The rise of the General
by toobeauty
Summary: This is my NaNoWriMo novel for 2011. Hephaestion Amyntoros is fed up of cleaning after Alexander's messes and he has decided that enough is enough ...
1. Prologue

**TITLE: "The Rise of the General"**

AUTHOR: too_beauty.

CHARACTERS: Hephaestion, Alexander, Queen Roxanne, Queen Olympias, Aristotle, many Companions and one mean goddess.

RATING: PG to R.

CATEGORY: Historical Alternative Universe.

DISCLAMER: I don't know the people involved; they belong to History and to themselves.

NO BETA so all mistakes are mine.

WARNING: A bit dark and angsty, most of the characters are completely out of their comfort area and you have to have in mind while reading that even though some historical facts are mentioned they do NOT follow the chronological order they had really happened in history.

This is totally an Alternative Universe created with the simple aim of seeing these well-known characters under a new light, MY light. You must also remember that I am LadyLight indeed so I will make them act as I really drafted for this story.

Chronologies, facts, places and people had been altered with the only purpose to fit the following plot, so most of the companions and their parents are still alive except Cleitus the Black.

This is my NaNoWrimo novel 2011 and I really appreciate your feedback.

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><p>Hephaestion saw with horror how the long spear that an inebriated Alexander was holding in his right hand went through Cleitus's body, piercing the strong frame of the elder Companion, dragging muscles, skin and blood out of his body. Blood spurt out of his slightly cold lips while the older companion's black eyes turned blurry and glassy announcing the imminent arrival of his death. The former strong knees shook, giving away under him and due to their weakness, they finally bent and made the heavy black-clad body fall onto the floor, the spear still attached to it, as a clear reminder of the crazy act that had just happened.<p>

Silence surrounded the present people and then muffled shouts and whispered nervous words escaped the lips of those who had been witnesses of the tragedy; running steps cleared the room of the Asian subjects who didn't want to take part in this domestic problem, especially because they did not know what consequences it could bring onto them.

The former lover of king Philip and right -hand man of king Alexander lifted his lifeless eyes towards his unrequited love and a mute "I love you" could be easily read in them, then his sight shifted towards his king and a single and painful "Why?" could be read in those nearly closed-forever eyes. The answer arrived late, when the warrior could no longer listen to it; the answer arrived as a single heartbreaking shout of "My poor Cleitus" from the King's lips, and he collapsed onto his knees as soon as he saw those dark eyes closed forever.

The discussion that had started as a simple compliment towards the new appointed satrap of the furthest eastern province of the Macedonian empire scaled up during the banquet, becoming a really heated battle of words. The rude exchange of insults between the king and Black Cleitus was helped by the enormous amount of uncut wine that both men had been drinking during the celebration.

Cleitus had made the mistake of mentioning King Philip and how Alexander would never be man enough to fill the former ruler's boots. He also talked about one of the most delicate topics among the eldest men in the Army, which was the incorporation of the Asian subjects not only as soldiers but also as proper members of the Macedonian empire. Cleitus told him that that was an insult to all the pure Macedonians who had followed him in his crazy campaign of conquering the East along so many stadia and so many long years, away from their families and homeland.

Alexander saw red at the simple mentioning of his father's name because even though he had had many victories and had gained a huge treasure as well as many peoples' recognition and loyalty, Cleitus had never seen him as his king but as the little imp he used to play with and torture when he was a child. Alexander tended to feel belittled due to the General's strength and bravery. The black General had also the bad sense to remind him, whenever he had the opportunity, especially if it was in a public event or meeting, about his courageous intervention and due to it, the salvation of Alexander's life during the battle at Issus; a fact that many of his Companions had already thanked the elder General for, especially a handsome young brunette, but that for Alexander that was a kind of stain or sin in his own brave image.

The young king, even with his mind very clouded by the excess of wine, just wanted a simple thing: he wanted Cleitus to shut up but the General had another idea, a very mean and dangerous one, because he continued mentioning and belittling every single action Alexander had done since he had been crowned as king after Philip's murder by the treacherous Pausanias until that very day. The elder man went as far as to give the impression that if Philip had not been murdered, Alexander might have not become king himself as Philip had had some doubts about his son's proper attitude and skills to be his heir, especially when his new wife was expecting a baby and her uncle was a respected member of the army. Alexander could not believe that Cleitus had had the guts to say that, especially because the very same Alexander had had the same doubts about his father appointing him as his rightful heir.

The rude conversation and mutual accusation continued getting more and more dangerous and its final blow was when Cleitus mentioned that he would have never conquered Asia without them, the pure Macedonians because the Army was his blood and he was too blind to see it. That was really a very low blow because Alexander loved his army above everything and he respected every single man that served under his command, considering each man as an important piece of that huge machine his empire had become in the last ten years.

By that time, wrath had taken control of the weaken-minded king and so the ruler of the known world took the worst decision, he took revenge in his own hand, killing the General without hesitating and without remorse. The attack was so quick, so unexpected that only Hephaestion could see a glimpse of what was going to happen but he was too late to stop his king. Hephaestion froze on the spot, seeing how the murder took place in front of his very own eyes and he felt impotent because he had not been able to prevent it, which was quite a strange situation because the brunette General was always one or two steps ahead his king.

Hephaestion realized that he had just lost not only a General Companion but also a good friend and his heart shrank with pain and grief; he also recognized in that moment that if Alexander had not been a larger –than- life- prince during Hephaestion's youth, he, Hephaestion Amyntoros, would have willingly accepted and become Cleitus's lover. Shaking that old but recurrent thought from his still clouded mind, Hephaestion knew that Alexander needed him more in that very same moment.

The brunette Hephaestion, even though he had been insulted previously by the braggart General who had called him a blind follower and sycophant, decided that he would take his time to mourn his friend properly later, when Alexander had found his calmness and peace of mind.

But when Hephaestion sought for his lover, he surprisingly saw that Alexander was being accompanied to his chamber by the Persian slut and he had loudly claimed that he only wanted and needed Bagoas by his side to be comforted by.

In that moment, Hephaestion Amyntoros, Macedonian General, loyal and steadfast friend, lover and beloved of the Macedonian king, knew that it had been enough, he had just reached the bottom of his patience and loyalty. He decided that for once; he would follow his brain and not his heart, which had been shattered by a proud and selfish king, who claimed to love him upon every person in the world in the safety of his chamber but that he showed something completely different in public.

Hephaestion decided that he would not do that anymore, he decided that if Alexander was king enough to go and conquer exotic lands and dangerous people and boast about his many achievements, he should have to be able to deal with the dirty aspects of governing too.

He was fed up of cleaning after his king whenever he had done something wrong, not only in the battlefield but also with the diplomats that used to come to deal peace treaties or surrender their freedom to the stormy Macedonian king.

Cleitus's death was the turning point in the blue-eyed man's life and so Hephaestion decided to deal with Alexander's dirt for the last time. He would help to deal with Cleitus's murder but that would be the last thing of that sort he would do for his king.

Hephaestion resolved that it was his time now; it was his time to leave the shadows behind, to leave that back position he had assumed so many years ago and enter with a firm step into the light. For the first time he could assure himself that he would not be alone in this new stage of his life, even though one of his strongest supports was lying now cold dead on the floor.

**_A new Hephaestion was born that day; it was the beginning of the rise of the General._**


	2. Chapter 1a  Cleitus

_**CHAPTER 1: CLEITUS, THE BLACK.**_

"_**A true friend stabs you in the front" (Oscar Wilde)**_

Before drawing his last breath, Cleitus focused his nearly lifeless dark but red-rimmed eyes on the man beside the king who was dressed in a dark orange robe and wearing silk trousers, his hair loose and his smooth cheeks covered by a thick beard. The nearly dead man saw the deep pain in those cerulean pools of heaven, eyes he had learnt to love in secret and to feel lust for their owner for the last twenty years.

Cleitus also saw his life passing at a slow pace before his eyes, as if it were the illustrated edition of one of those books "his brunette pretty boy" used to read and carry with him wherever he went. There had been times when the elder black warrior had felt a rush of jealousy whenever he saw the brunette Hephaestion with a book in his hands, mainly because he wanted to be one of those books, in that way he would be able to rest onto those milky thighs that drove him crazy or he would be carried against the warm and strong chest as if he were a dear possession for the blue-eyed man. He also saw with envy how his slender but strong fingers move tenderly over the lines written on them, his attention really focused on those letters as if those paper sheets filled with scribbles were the smooth skin of his beloved. He was also resentful of those velvety rose lips that mouthed lowly those written words as if he were murmuring words of love into the ear of his lover, resting on his lap.

The images running before his eyes stopped suddenly in the first page of that book that was his life, especially in the first page of that special chapter that took place twenty years ago in the city of Mieza and so the dying man remembered that event with sad happiness.

He remembered seeing this outstanding man at the tender age of seven, all big bones and skin, no fat or muscles inside the slender body but that was still quite tall for his age. His hair, the colour of dark honey, reached his shoulders, which was not a common length for boys but it looked good on him.

The young soldier was quite distracted by the arrival of the newcomers and their belongings when he realized that a young boy was nearby. The boy covered the short distance between them, stood up firmly in front of him, looked up and down, assessing the tall man's body in front of him and, fixing his sky-blue eyes on the dark as coal ones, he expressed his opinion of the man he had in front of him in a rich voice with a slight Athenian accent.

"When I grow up, I will be a brave warrior as you are" the little voice came out clearly from the boy's lips.

The young man looked down at the boy in astonishment; it was uncommon to get a positive and appraising reaction as that one. In fact, most of the children around that area used to be terribly afraid of him and he also knew that some women threatened their little ones with calling Big Black Cleitus if they behaved badly. He laughed at that because he always reminded himself that it was better to be feared than forgotten; he didn't know that years later those some feelings would mean the death of him.

The warrior looked down into those sky-blue eyes and asked with his thunderous voice:

"Why do you say that? How do you know that I am a brave soldier?"

"Because you have as many scars as my papa has and he is the bravest soldier of the Macedonian army" said the boy without backing a single step.

"Oh yes? Who is your papa, boy?" asked Cleitus with a big smirk in his lips.

"My papa is Amyntas Amyntoros, Diplomat and General in King Philip's army" said the little brunette with his voice so filled with pride that it made Cleitus feel envious of such tender devotion and love. "Do you know him, sir?" Hephaestion asked with certainty in his voice, as if it was just natural that his papa were known by this brave warrior.

"Of course I do, everybody in this Army knows your father, not only because he is a brave warrior and an excellent tactician but also because he is intelligent and a merciful diplomat" Cleitus answered seriously, seeing a small version of the older warrior in the little boy standing by his side and he prayed silently to all the gods and goddesses in Mount Olympus that this boy could become as good as his father had always been.

The exchange of greetings was over and Hephaestion turned round and was about to run towards the palace when he stopped suddenly. He drew a big breath, squared his shoulders and turned round again and looking at Cleitus he asked with a firm voice:

"Would you let me be part of your arm when I became a soldier?"

The little boy was waiting for his answer and the young man realized that his reply was important for the little one. He stared back and said in a loud tone:

"Only if you are very good, I would not expect less from an Amyntoros"

"I will work very hard to deserve that honour, I will never complain and I am good at following orders" the little boy said without breathing, as if he wanted to convince the warrior to take him without a doubt.

"If that is so, come and see me as soon as you start your training, you may change your mind and become more a man with words than with swords; both kind of men are very necessary but I am a brute, I will not be able to help you with your academic studies but it will be my honour to train you in the art of war, if that is what you still want when the right time comes"

"I will not change my mind, I want to help my king so he can reach his dreams and take us as far as possible, where we can meet new peoples, cultures, languages and so the unknown world will no longer be known as unknown but as Macedonian" said the boy with such eloquence that he left the man mute for some minutes.

"You truly know what you want to be when you grow up, I will try to stay near in case you need me and my strong arms to defend you; and now you have reminded me that there is another boy who you may like to meet, he is as physically opposed to you as the day is to the night but you both share the same dreams and both speak with such nice words and passion that I am sure that you two would convince Dionysus to stay sober forever".

Cleitus spoke his words from the bottom of his heart, believing every single one of them. He really wanted to be part of this strong-willed boy's life because he was sure he would be an important member of the kingdom. He lowered his gaze towards the boy who was looking back at him with his eyes wide open as if he could not believe the words that had just left the soldier's mouth.

Suddenly the little boy threw his head backwards and laughed loudly and Cleitus looked with wonder at his new and prospective charge, the boy had the most infectious and pure laughter he had listened to in a long time and he realized that the blue eyed-boy had captured his heart forever.

Life had never been gentle with Cleitus; he had lost his whole family when he was eleven and he only had a single elder sister called Lanike who worked as a maid in the palace. That was how Cleitus met King Philip and became his page at a very early age. From that very moment, the twelve-year-old boy embraced the military life with passion, distinguishing in wrestling, weapons handling and having huge reserves of endless stamina. The only drawback was his temper that was always fierce and rather uncontrollable. By chance, he did show his manliness in battle, at an early age and having saved his king's life and got wounded in the process, he was assigned as a personal guard to the king. The young soldier developed a deep crush towards his king and he was rewarded when he was taken under Philip's guard as his eromenos.

Cleitus used to see everything through Philip's eyes and so he tended to agree with most of his opinions. Many of the elder army men laughed at him, calling him Philip's lap dog and after having suffered that humiliation for many months, he decided to stop being so submissive and so he started to speak up, loudly, without thinking twice before spitting the words, many times as lethal as any of the weapons he was so used to handling. Years later, that impulsive personality would bring his own death.

Life brought him a breath of fresh air when he met Hephaestion and they were connected nearly immediately even though the soldier was fifteen years older than the newcomer.

Cleitus had early decided to look after the young brunette that grew into an outstanding youth. The companion was now in his late twenties and Hephaestion was nearly fifteen, a perfect age to take an erastes. Cleitus decided that he would let the young brunette know that he was interested and available if he was ready to pursue that kind of relationship. It also helped that a very influential woman had given him her blessing in this subject and she was wiling to help him as he loved Hephaestion too much.

Cleitus was a man on a mission, he started to appear during the wrestling practice and watched as the young Hephaestion had mastered some movements of his own, giving him supremacy over the other wrestlers, even the prince. It was well-known among the young companions that Hephaestion never let Alexander win as the rest used to do and that attitude was highly appreciated by Cleitus because he could see that Hephaestion was a good influence for the young prince but that he had also retained inside the strength to be a man who could fight his own battles and did not need Alexander's influence and name to become the remarkable man that Cleitus knew he would be.

However, Cleitus used to laugh internally whenever the prince was defeated by his friend, because even though the prince recognized Hephaestion's superiority, he got still flustered and angry because it was difficult for him to accept a defeat. But Hephaestion had a noble soul and his care for the prince was so big that one day he let the prince win in order to let Alexander have some peace of mind. However, the prince, who could read his friend as easily as he read his dear "Iliad", got really angry and he did not mind accusing Hephaestion of being lenient with the Macedonian heir.

An utterly distraught Hephaestion ran towards the barracks looking for his friend and adviser. Cleitus, who was coming from the communal baths with only a thin towel wrapped around his waist, saw himself with an armful of Hephaestion, who hid his head in the crook of Cleitus's neck.

Cleitus was not accustomed to the youth's reaction so he let his instinct guide him and so he put one of his arms around the slender waist while the other rubbed up and down the brunette's back. He listened to some muffled words against the side of his neck but he could not make out what Hephaestion was saying clearly. He pushed the young man backwards softly, until he was at an arm's length and wiped some tears away the cerulean eyes with his strong thumbs. Hephaestion looked slightly upwards, the former skinny boy was just half a head shorter than Cleitus, and whispered a muffled "Why?" and the brave warrior, who could take up to twenty men in battle without sweating, could not comfort the youth in his arms.

He racked his fingers through the shoulder-length bronze tresses, massaging the scalp, trying to give some soothe. After some minutes his mission was accomplished and he could see how a deep blush spread from Hephaestion's head to his neck. He tried to hide it because he did not want Cleitus to think of him as a weak man, especially now when he had the strong intention to be a soldier in Cleitus's cavalry section.

But the elder man did not see this as weakness but he quickly decided to take advantage of the situation between these two friends, maybe this was the opportunity he was seeking to get Hephaestion for himself, away from prince Alexander, and make him his eromenos. It could be as easy as killing two birds with only one sling shot.

TBC

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><p>Thanks so much for the alerts and reviews! i am so happy because this story has already 167 hits but I'd like to have more opinion about ti!<p>

Queendel: thanks and you will see a veru strong Hephaestion here!


	3. Chapter 1b Cleitus

**Chapter 1b: Cleitus the Black.**

"_**...unrequited love does not die; it's only beaten down to a secret place where it hides, curled and wounded. For some unfortunates, it turns bitter and mean, and those who come after pay the price for the hurt done by the one who came before." (Elle Newmark, The Book of Unholy Mischief)**_

Cleitus made Hephaestion sit on the cot of his bed and remained in silence until the youth was ready to open his heart to him. Cleitus knew that he could not make a harsh remark against the prince without being accused of treason but he would do nothing to take Hephaestion's doubts away.

"He humiliated me in front of the other companions, Cleitus" said Hephaestion in a sad tone.

"I do not think that was his real intention, you know, better than others that he tends to react hotly and let mean words leave his mouth without thinking before" said Cleitus trying to calm Hephaestion down.

"But he should really think first before saying something, he is a prince, the rightful heir to the Macedonian throne and not the brutish son of a shepherd. He has to realize that he can really hurt people's feelings with his angry words" Hephaestion tried to put into words all his discontent.

"I know, my pretty boy, but not all of us can remain calm and with a cold head as you can, we are more passionate" Cleitus added, giving him a sided smirk.

"What do you want to say, Cleitus, that I am a cold blood man? That I am incapable of having strong feelings? Because I do have them and I suffer a lot because of them, especially when I have to hide them" whispered the brunette as if he were revealing an important state secret.

"Don't say that Hephaestion! of course you are capable of strong feelings but you are so rational sometimes as if you were carrying an old and wise head over very young shoulders" a hint of remorse tinged Cleitus's words.

"I know, master Aristotle says the same, that I have to let my heart reigns from time to time and so in that way I will feel more relaxed and ready to express my secret feelings" the brunette confessed sighing loudly.

"Master Aristotle is right, you always seem so correct and kind that mean people will take advantage of your noble soul to hurt you. But now tell me who this person that has awakened those strong feelings inside your heart is? Don't tell me that it is our little imp of prince because you will break my heart" said Cleitus smiling and trying to hide at the same time his desire for the young man sitting next to him.

"I love Alexander as a dear friend but I know that nothing will happen between us, he likes women and he needs at least one to produce an heir" Hephaestion became really interested in his laced fingers resting onto his lap.

"You did not answer my question; you have just expressed what it should be but not what you really want to happen".

Cleitus, by that moment, was getting more and more nervous because Hephaestion could not decide what his feelings for Alexander were yet and he did not want to make a move towards the brunette when he was still so confused.

"I don't know, I just know that there are times when I cannot speak to him without him getting angry, in other occasions he is the best advisor I could have but lately it has been more than difficult to please him. His moods are quite erratic and I really don't know what to expect. There are also other moments when I catch him looking at me and his eyes show me the world and the stars and so much love …" the young brunette let his voice fade away.

"I suppose that you need to give him time to clear up his mind and most importantly to give him space. He will always know where to find you in case of need"

"That's true, but in the meantime, what do I do? Do I just stop my life in order to be ready to his beck and call? I am no one's servant" said Hephaestion showing some hints of anger in his baritone voice.

"Now I ask you, what do you need?" Cleitus tried to calm down his friend and let Hephaestion realize that he was nor being very logical.

"I need someone by my side that can help me to deal with many things. I know that I have many people around ready to offer me their support, king Philip and especially queen Olympias had been so good to me, treating me always as a son, especially after my father's sudden death but … I need something else …. I cannot explain what …" the brunette grabbed his long tresses between his fingers and pulled hard.

Cleitus took the hands out of the hair and set his forefinger under Hephaestion's chin, pulling his face up gently. He breathed deeply and said:

"If you do not find the idea repulsive, I can be that person, Hephaestion, you are the right age to take an erastes and let him teach you about the art of war and love and, if I remember correctly, you promised me, when you were no taller than my waist height, that you would serve under my command" Cleitus said all this without breathing, thinking that if he stopped, his voice would falter.

Hephaestion lifted his gaze and stared at the man next to him, a shy smile crowned his face and his eyes got a new shine. Since he met the black warrior that summer afternoon, he had dreamed about this day, when the tall and strong man would ask him to take part in that special relationship between two men who cared a lot about the other. He was about to give him an affirmative answer when they heard some racket outside the barracks, a group of four pages were running along the corridors shouting a single name _"__Hephaestion,__Hephaestion,__Hephaestion__"__._ When the two occupants of the chamber could understand what the pages were shouting, they stepped outside the room and drew the pages' attention towards them.

"I am here, what is the problem?" asked Hephaestion looking directly to one of the pages who was running towards him.

"Prince Alexander is worried to death, thinking that he had offended you so badly that you are going to leave him" explained the dark haired-page who was also trying to catch up his breath, with his hands resting on his knees.

Another page approached them and seeing the young companion in good health and standing there, he turned round towards the exit door and started to shout loudly:

"My prince, my prince, we have found him, Hephaestion is here!"

A very anxious prince appeared at the entrance of the barracks and distinguishing the slender frame of his friend, he ran towards him and hugged him tightly as soon as he was by his side.

"I thought I had lost you, my Phai" whispered the slightly shorter youth against the brunette's shoulder.

"Calm down Alexander, there is no danger" said Hephaestion caressing his friend's back.

Cleitus saw the interaction between the two young men and he felt his heart shrink. He stepped aside a little but he still could listen to their conversation.

"Forgive me Phai, I swear that I will never treat you so badly again" said the blonde with a contrite voice, his lips mouthing those words with soft and warm lips against the brunette's neck.

"There is nothing to forgive, Xander" said the brunette, trying to excuse his best friend and feeling a bit flushed due to the short and hot exhalations against his skin.

"Of course there is, I said awful things to you and you only deserve my devotion and friendship" said the prince, stepping backwards but without releasing his hold from his friend's waist.

"Fine, Alexander if that will appease your anxiety, I would accept your apology" said the brunette, getting lost in those eyes that had aroused the most confusing feelings in his heart for the last months.

"Why were you here? Why didn't you search for Mother? I know she is the one who can calm you better than anyone else" asked Alexander a bit confused and surprised because of his friend's choice.

"He came here, looking for me, Alexander" said Cleitus with his tone of voice a bit louder than necessary.

"Oh, Cleitus, my good and loyal Cleitus, how can I thank you?" said Alexander, looking at the taller warrior into his eyes.

"I don't understand Alexander what you mean, I was helping Hephaestion" Cleitus wanted to erase that smile from the prince's face.

"That's why I am thanking you, for taking such good care of my beloved" explained Alexander without blushing a tiny bit.

"Am I your beloved, Alexander?" asked Hephaestion with astonishment, her cheeks getting a darker shade.

"Of course you are, my Phai; you are the moon to my sun, the blood to my veins, the love of my heart" the prince took advantage of that moment to pour his feelings out of his worried heart.

"I don't know what to say, Alexander. You really took me by surprise" said Hephaestion, trying to explain his state of mind.

"Maybe you can give him some time to think about it, Alexander. Hephaestion may have had other proposals to consider too" said Cleitus, trying to hide his anger and seeing how his opportunity could be slipping like the sand among open fingers.

"What other proposals? It has not been born yet the man who could take my Phai away from my side. I will fight with all my strength, with teeth and nails if necessary to keep him near me for the rest of our lives" Alexander said that so convinced that his statement prompted Cleitus's next question.

"And what if Hephaestion does not think or want the same? Would you force him to accept you?"

"Of course not but I don't think that Hephaestion is willing to reject me as his beloved. Apart from that, I do not know why I am discussing this sensible topic with you, when only my Phai is the one who has to decide" said Alexander trying to stop the meddling of the rough warrior.

Alexander turned round and caught Hephaestion's hands between his and brought him nearer, invading his personal space and leaning over, he set a tiny butterfly kiss on the velvety rose lips. Hephaestion kissed him back and when their first real kiss was over, twin smiles appeared on their faces without realizing that a pair of very dark eyes were following their action and were burning with wrath and envy.

And so Cleitus saw, for the first time, how Alexander took Hephaestion away from him and there would be many more, creating a difficult atmosphere between those two strong-willed men that could only end in a major disaster.

Cleitus learnt to live his life sharing "his pretty boy" with the blonde prince but he did not let any opportunity pass its way so Hephaestion was frequently reminded of Cleitus's offer, sometimes in a subtle way, other times not so subtlety.

But years went by and Alexander and Hephaestion's relationship got steadier and stronger and the black warrior could see, with pain in his eyes, how his brunette dream got further and more difficult to catch.

Unluckily, a feeling of resentment grew and nestled inside the brave man's heart and that dark feeling made him be mean and impolite towards his former crush.

Hephaestion, who had always admired him and look up at him, started to avoid his company; firstly because Cleitus was always insulting or saying bad things about him, spreading low opinions about Hephaestion's skills as a soldier and a real companion and secondly because he had been able to read behind that hard mask the older companion was wearing and discovered that he was the cause of his sorrow.

The day of Alexander and Roxanne's wedding was the worst; Cleitus had been drinking since very early that day and he was rather drunk by the time the ceremony ended. While he was looking and listening attentively to the vows between the groom and bride, he closed his eyes and pictured himself in the same situation, but instead of a woman standing beside him, he could only image his tall blue-eyed- brunette in all his glory and looking at him back with love and devotion.

But when he opened his eyes, he sadly realized that that dream would never become true because that very same brunette was looking with love and devotion not at him but at his king, who happened to be his lover of ten years.

Wrath and despair invaded Cleitus's heart and he felt the need to unleash those feelings but not knowing how he decided to go on drinking more of that uncut red wine.

He was wandering around the banquet tables when he saw Hephaestion walking towards his younger companions; he also saw how they comforted him with a hug and gentle pats on his back, as if they wanted to reaffirm that Alexander had only married Roxanne due to his needs and not because he had felt bewitched by her charms and graceful body. Cleitus knew he was lying to himself but he needed that lie to go on with his life. But when he saw Hephaestion leaving the comfort of his friends and being ready to leave the celebration, all those lies emerged from the bottom of his heart and reached his hand, that clenched into a tight fist and it struck Hephaestion on his mouth, splitting his lower lip.

Hephaestion, astonished by the hit, froze in the spot, trying to understand what had happened to him. Help came to him immediately and Cleitus, feeling embarrassed of his own behaviour, left the banquet and hid between the thighs of a wanton and random woman.

Alexander, without being present this time, had been able to snatch his crush again from him and once more Hephaestion was the one injured by the king's selfishness.

TBC


	4. Chapter 2a Olympias

_Thank you so much for the alerts and hits on the story and I would really really like to know your opinion about it; I don't like asking for reviews but I truly appreciate them._

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><p><em><strong>CHAPTER TWO: Queen Olympias.<strong>_

"_**Mother is the bank where we deposit all our hurts and worries" (unknown)**_

Cleitus was still warm but quickly passing away when a secret messenger was called and given a sealed scroll. That same man got onto the quickest horse of the stable and set off quickly, trying hard not to be seen. He had an important mission to accomplish and his life would depend on his expertise and secrecy.

The messenger rode all night long and at the crack of dawn, he arrived at the big house where the royal mother was living.

He announced his presence by giving clear instructions to the stable boy: the horse had to be dried off carefully, his body was covered in sweat due to the hard exertion; it had to be massaged and be fed with fresh hay because this same animal would do the ride back as soon as he had rested enough. The messenger could not be gone too long because his absence would be noticed and it could raise the alarm among some of the closest companions.

He entered the house and waited nervously in the kitchen while the maid went to look for her mistress. It was not the first time that the loyal Nykos had done this but he always felt a bit nervous in the presence of his queen, because for him and especially for the man that had sent him here, Olympias would always be The Queen.

Queen Mother Olympias appeared quite soon, with one of her always present snakes coiled round her arm; she left it inside the basket and embraced the young man tenderly, preventing him to bow at her reverently. A single question escaped her lips nervously: "Is my sweet boy fine?" the messenger nodded and the queen released her breath. Then Nykos handed out a sealed letter; she looked at it with astonishment, especially at the blue seal because it was not the red official one, it was another seal she knew very well and nervousness crept along her spine because it was not good news when two letters by him arrived so close one to the other.

She broke with care the cerulean shield-shaped seal and opened the letter. Her dark green eyes moved over that very neat and well-known penmanship and her heart shrunk inside her chest; even though Cleitus the Black had been a rival to her husband's affection, he had always been a loyal subject and friend; he really did not deserve to die like that, like an old and useless dog, unloved by the one who he had trusted most during all his life.

The letter had very few lines but Alexander's lover had been able to summarize the sorrowful event without the need of many of them.

Olympias made a quick retreat to her chamber to read again the terrible and sad news from the Palace. She took a deep breath and reopened the letter again. On her way to her chamber, she had convinced herself that she needed to read those lines again because, even though she knew in her heart that what had happened was possible, she still could not believe it.

The words written inside the scroll had not changed while the letter remained closed; she let her watery eyes run over them again while her lips formed and repeated those words in her rich voice aloud:

"_My Dear Mother, the eagle has been flying erratically for the last months; I could nearly affirm it is practically out of control. It had dispatched of an old prey, a strong and old Black one in a moment of wrath. I think that this situation would become unbearable in the following days or months if we do not act immediately._

_I would be very pleased if you can come back home as soon as possible; we really should take care of this behaviour and I really need you by my side now._

_Yours as always, your loving son, H"_

Queen Olympias went back to the kitchen where she met Nykos, the loyal messenger was having an invigorating breakfast but he stopped eating as soon as she entered the room. He stood up while cleaning his mouth with a piece of cloth and waited in silence for the queen to speak.

She gave him a letter with her encrypted answer and told him to finish his breakfast with calm and rest for a while before starting his journey back to the royal palace. The young man greeted her and sat back finishing his hearty breakfast but he could not avoid seeing the sad expression in her still young face.

Olympias went back to her chamber for the second time in less than an hour; she was feeling really sad because her sweet boy was in need of her and she was not there to comfort him. She walked towards her chest of drawers and took a dark wooden box reverently, caressing its cover with love and cradling it against her chest for some minutes, as if it were a precious treasure.

She made slowly her way back to her favourite chair, one of the many gifts given by her sweet boy, and placed it near the window, through which the morning sun rays were coming with their light and warmth to make her feel not so sad and lonely. She sat more comfortably on her chair, rearranged the many small pillows in her back and then took a golden key that was hidden in a secret pocket in her peplos and opened the wooden box which was full of letters and messages, most of them with a yellowish colour.

A little smile crowned her lips and she let her long and slender fingers run onto a very old letter. His very first letter.

She opened it carefully, the paper showed the signs of many folds and it had a small tear in one of them, as if the letter had been opened and closed many times in the past. Another smile appeared on her face when she saw a very detailed drawing of herself and her snakes. The lines of the drawing were very accurate and with firm strokes denoting the security of the artist and the coloring was really realistic, almost perfect. Below the drawing, in a very neat and big handwriting, there was a message for her from her sweet boy that read "Today we celebrate the day you were born and all the gods are happy for you and so am I. With love, Hephaestion"

Her sweet boy had been seven in that moment and he had been living with them at the royal palace for the last six months. His father Amyntas had brought him to visit Alexander but that was an excuse, he had no one to leave the boy with as his dear wife Helena had suddenly passed away, leaving them alone in the world. General Amyntoros was also suffering from depression due to his recent loss so king Philip suggested he went on a diplomatic mission for him. Amyntas accepted so he took Hephaestion with him. He promised Hephaestion that he was coming back in a month and that he would come to pick him up and take him to their home.

But Amyntas could not keep the promise given to his seven-year old boy; on his way to Athens, the caravan he was travelling with was attacked by some ruthless mercenaries, who not only took all their possessions but also killed them all, without making any difference when they encountered women and children. Amyntas's last thoughts were for his only son, he was leaving a naïve and good boy in a world full of perils and bad people. He prayed to the gods for his wellbeing and asked them to make of him a strong and decent man to accomplish his many dreams without losing his honesty and kindness.

When the news of the attack reached the palace, King Philip felt really guilty because, in his eagerness to help his friend in his time of sorrow, he had sent him to his own death. In that exact moment, he decided that he would honour his friend's life by bringing up his son personally as if he were his own son.

He looked for the boy to tell him the tragic news, thinking in the best way to do it. Fortunately, Hephaestion was playing with Alexander under the supervision of Lanike and Cleitus, both siblings were catching up after some months without seeing each other. Cleitus was telling her about her previous encounter with Hephaestion and how deep the child had made an impression in him and Lanike laughed because he had never seen her brother so smitten with anyone before. At that moment king Philip entered the room and all the presents stopped their activities. The strong and hardened soldier took a seat in a low stool and beckoned the blue-eyed boy over and made him sit next to him. He drew a deep breath and told him the sad news, speaking with a calm tone and slowly so the child could understand what had happened. Lanike covered her mouth with one of her hands to stop the sob that was about to let her lips, Cleitus stood up slowly and approached the boy, Alexander wanted to hug his friend to comfort him but Hephaestion looked at the four of them with very big and teary eyes, let his head hung for a second and then ran away. Three adults and one child ran out of the chamber and tried to follow him but Hephaestion had always been a fast runner.

When they finally located him, they realized that Hephaestion had looked for the only person who could only comfort him best. They saw how the small boy was curled in a tight ball on Olympias's lap while the queen ran her fingers tenderly up and down along the small back, whispering endearment words into Hephaestion's ear and kissing the crown of the brunette's head with deep tenderness and love.

They could see the small boy shaking like a leaf and sobbing quite loudly and how after some minutes under the queen's loving ministrations, his body stopped trembling and only one or two shivers travelled along his slender body. Finally his sobs quietened down and the boy lifted his tear-stained face towards Olympias. The Epirote young woman cupped the child's face between her soft hands and dried his tears by brushing the reddish cheeks with her thumbs. Hephaestion gave a loud and resigned sigh and the queen set a tender kiss on the boy's turned-up nose. Then she made him look at her and with a calm and warm voice she told him that from that moment and forever, he would be her sweet boy and that she promised that nobody would hurt him if she could avoid it. She also added that she could be his mother only if he wanted and that if he accepted that would make of her the happiest woman on earth.

Lanike smiled at the scene developing in front of her eyes because, deep in her heart, she had always known that Olympias had a heart as good as gold but that she hid it because she did not want everybody see her as a weak woman, especially towards Alexander who, on Philip's demand, was brought up in a neutral family atmosphere as his father did not want him to get too attached to his mother and her ideas.

Philip breathed with relief when he saw his wife who, as usual was a step before him, and had already taken care of the distressed boy.

Cleitus felt relaxed because he knew that Hephaestion would be well educated and cared for but he also felt a little disappointed because for some minutes, after listening about the tragic death of Hephaestion's father, he had treasured the idea of adopting the brunette boy for who he felt a strange attraction.

Alexander, however, was not happy at all: he really did not care if his parents wanted to help Hephaestion by raising him as their son now that he had no one in the world; Prince Alexander was angry because he would have to share His Phai with more people and he really wanted his Phai only for himself. Alexander had never felt before this kind of possessiveness towards anyone or anything but he had already discovered that Hephaestion was very special and dear to him and that he needed him as much as he needed air to live.

That night, the Macedonian queen tucked her new son tight in his bed and sitting on a very uncomfortable stool, she watched over Hephaestion's dreams and dealt with his bad ones through comfort words and soft caresses.

During the night, feeling a cold chill in the air coming from the furthest window, she stood up to close it better; in her way back to the bed, she saw that her own flesh and blood son had climbed up onto Hephaestion's bed, slipped under the sheets and was spooning his friend tight, with his little arms set around the flat chest. Olympias saw how, after some minutes, Hephaestion turned round and set his head onto Alexander's chest, rubbing his cheek against the soft cotton chiton Alexander used to sleep in.

Olympias was about to tell Alexander off due to his intrusion when the little prince opened his mouth and spoke lowly because he did not want to wake up his friend. He told her that she could go back to her chamber because from that moment he was going to take care of Hephaestion because the brunette boy was his.

Olympias let out a muffled laugh at her son's possessiveness but Alexander did not take it well and made her leave, threatening her to call someone to remove her if she did not accept his decision. Olympias agreed before Alexander threw a tantrum but something broke inside her heart.

That was the first of many times that Alexander took Hephaestion away from her. She swore to herself that one day she would forget that she had delivered him into the world and she would deal with his capricious behaviour.

She had waited nearly for twenty years but now it was her time to recover her sweet boy all for herself, especially because it was him who was asking for his mother's help and presence by his side.

Olympias closed the letter once more, kissed it reverently and put it back carefully inside the box.

TBC


	5. Chapter 2b Olympias

" _**Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible" (Unknown)**_

Queen Olympias took another letter from the wooden box and let her mind take her back to those happy times she spent with her sweet boy so many years ago. The letter she had now taken out was written by an eight-year-old Hephaestion, it was a simple and short message but so meaningful that it made her feel like a goddess when she found it lying over her favourite pillow on her bed.

The message said "_Thank __you __Mother __for __looking __after __me. __With __all __my __love,__your __son __Hephaestion__"_

Olympias felt her heart flutter inside her chest as if she were living that moment again. That winter Hephaestion had fallen seriously ill after catching a cold in one of their "expeditions" with Alexander, those short trips that Alexander and he used to do in order to prove their bravery while staying out in the woods until the sun had been replaced by the moon in the sky. High fever and severe cramps had attacked the boy's body without mercy, weakening it up to the point that he stopped eating and he fell into a state of unconsciousness and paralysis.

Olympias never left Hephaestion's side since the very moment he was brought to her by Cleitus, who had cradled the passed out body in his strong arms. It had been the black warrior who had found Alexander, running desperately towards the palace and shouting that he needed help for his dear friend who had collapsed and was dying in the woods. The poor prince was so terrified that something bad could happen to his dear friend that the only thing he did was to run back and forwards to the place where his friend had collapsed. When the fever started, ravishing the slender body, Olympias spent two whole days and its nights refreshing Hephaestion's feverish and reddish skin with cold baths, wiping away the cold sweat from his face by using the softest cloth she had been able to find among her own. She also helped him to rinse his mouth and get rid of the stale breath after every time he got sick and vomited his guts out; she massaged the little brunette's stiffen stomach muscles whenever the cramps made him turn into a tight fetal position. The worried queen made good use of her healing medicines, providing the boy with as many concoctions she could make to lessen the pain and make him feel better.

Alexander, once again, wanted to have things done his way but Olympias stayed firm this time. In order to achieve her goal, she let slip in Philip's ear, in one of his many visits to the boy's chamber, that Hephaestion's illness might turn to be a contagious illness so it was better to keep Alexander away from him in order to avoid him falling ill too. Philip, who even though was worried about Hephaestion, was worried more about his own heir, ordered the prince to remain far away from his friend's chamber until the danger had passed. Alexander threw the worst tantrum ever but the king did not pay attention to it and commanded Alexander to obey him because he was not only his father but also his king. Alexander accepted the order but he continued with his protests, demanding to have as many news from Hephaestion as possible.

The trick was successful and so only Olympias and Lanike were allowed to assist Hephaestion during the course of his illness, which would never turn to be infectious at all. Olympias breathed more easily after not having Alexander around, breathing behind her neck, not because she did not love his own blood and flesh son but because she would have the opportunity to look after her dear sweet boy and spoiled him with her caresses and undivided attention. She loved both boys dearly and deeply but she could be more affectionate with Hephaestion because he would never have to carry the throne over his shoulders as Alexander would. Time would prove her differently.

After a hard week of worries and misery, after long and sleepless night and frantic daytimes, Hephaestion started to show a slight improvement in his condition and he started to be awake more frequently and for longer periods every time. He dared to open his cerulean eyes just a little but that thin slit would make the Queen smile broadly.

Olympias was finger combing the bronze tresses carefully, trying to disentangle the rebellious knots in them, when Hephaestion shakily grabbed one of her hands and gave it a light squeeze, then he lifted it up to his chapped and dry lips and set a loving and soft kiss in her knuckles. When the loving gesture was over, he lifted his gaze from her hand and saw the queen sobbing silently. He asked "Mother?" in such a tiny voice that Olympias did not listen to him because she was so lost in her thoughts and thanking the gods for her son's recovery. Hephaestion tried speaking again and this time he did it a bit louder "Mother? Are you alright?" Olympias stopped the movement of her hand along the brunette's hair and looked with surprise at those beautiful blue eyes that were no longer glassy due to the fever. She took a moment to get her breath back and she let her drown into those peaceful pools of heaven.

"I am Olympias, my dear Hephaestion" she said, thinking that maybe the boy was confusing her with Helena, his own mother, as both of them had green eyes.

"I know Mother, why are you crying? Are you feeling unwell?" he asked with concern in his hoarse voice that still showed signs of his illness.

"No, my son, I was terribly worried about you but now you are getting over from your illness and in no time you will be on your feet again, playing and studying as you used to do" she said with emotion in her voice because her sweet boy had addressed her as his mother twice, not by mistake but out of love.

Hephaestion smiled at her with that smile that conquered hearts in seconds but the soothing movement of her fingers caressing his scalp made him doze off again, but this time breathing easier than before. The fever had finally broken and released the body from the pain.

Thinking that Hephaestion had fallen asleep, Olympias started to stand up from the bed when slender but still short fingers caught hers and entwined them together. Without opening his eyes, Hephaestion murmured a simple "Mum, stay with me please". Without hesitation, Olympias climbed onto the bed again and lied next to him, with her arms around his body; Hephaestion got closer to her and snuggled against her soft body, seeking her warmth and safety. Olympias brushed a gentle kiss against his now cool forehead and whispered against his hair "Always son, anything for you". Mother and son rested peacefully for the first time after a hard week.

The short message appeared on her bed accompanied with a single red rose some days after, as soon as the little boy was totally recovered and now nearly twenty years later both things were still kept together, tied with a silk red ribbon that the Macedonian queen used to wear on her long black hair.

Many more letters and meaningful messages started to fill queen Olympias's box in the following months and years and her heart filled with love whenever a new letter appeared in it.

Her fingers travelled along the numerous papers until she found the one she was looking for. This letter was written by a smitten sixteen-year-old Hephaestion whose heart was in a huge turmoil, a natural state for a teenager who was discovering the delights of the flesh and love. Olympias, with the letter in her not-so-young hands, remembered the previous days to that letter. Hephaestion had been highly distracted, even his teacher Aristotle had had some words with the queen due to Hephaestion's weird behaviour, it was not common to see the brunette so pensive and so deep in his thoughts that he did not pay attention to the things around him.

Olympias was a bit worried; she had seen the changes in her sweet boy but this time she did not know how to help him. She knew Hephaestion was entering in that difficult stage where they were neither boys nor men but they wanted to show their manliness anyway. She had also discovered the pain in Hephaestion's cerulean eyes whenever his gaze fell on Alexander, who seemed oblivious to his friend's crush, this unrequited feeling, even though the prince treated his brunette friend with manners by far more gentle and polite he did with the rest of the companions and they spent their days together, every single moment of them.

For the past six months, Queen Olympias had talked to Philip about the need of finding a suitable erastes for Hephaestion; a noble man, not only handsome but also kind and intelligent who could take care of her young man with respect and promising to be totally committed to Hephaestion in a faithful relationship.

Philip had agreed with her almost immediately mainly because he did not want to encourage Alexander's feelings towards his friend. He thought that Hephaestion would have been the perfect choice if both youths had not been brought up together as brothers and Philip, even though he loved Hephaestion deeply, could see how Hephaestion could become Alexander's weakness in a moment of high tension or stress and a king did not have the right to hesitate or be seen weak or favoring anyone in particular, especially a king in the making and one with so many expectations to fulfill and situations to control.

The royal couple had realized some years ago that Alexander's possessiveness towards Hephaestion had not been born as a simple caprice of a child but out of deep and true love and that worried them deeply, especially because Philip had seen his son looking towards Hephaestion many times asking for his silent approval, and that was unacceptable in the future heir of his vast empire. But he also had to recognize that Hephaestion shared Alexander's dreams of expansion and conquest and if he showed one third of his father's ability as a diplomat, Alexander's empire would be built in the foundations of words and not by the use of their swords, providing that his stubborn son listened to his more rational and logical friend.

Both young men together could be the most powerful weapon the world had seen up to that moment and the old king was sure that they would make magnificent things together.

Olympias's reason was more selfish, she knew that sooner or later she would lose Alexander to his Army and Empire and even to his own family; that was his real goal in life and a hard duty to fulfill; that was one of the many reasons why she did never let herself be too close to Alexander as she had been with her pretty boy Hephaestion. Apart from that, Philip had never allowed Olympias to be as caring with his son as he did not want him to be turned into a man easily manipulated by a wise woman. Philip suspected Alexander could develop a volatile personality as his own so he tried to imprint the hardest control possible on his son.

For exactly the opposite reason, Olympias had always had a close and tight relationship with Hephaestion because she wanted and needed to keep him safe and close to her; she had also thought about the possibility of granting Hephaestion the chance to be with someone she could dominate easily and get rid of them if it was necessary to keep his Hephaestion safe.

She had thought about many of those possible candidates and one of them was leading the career, he was not as intelligent as she would have wanted but he possessed a very strong personality and was brave enough to keep her son alive. She also knew that this man would love her brunette as much as she did; in fact he had been loving him for some years.

TBC

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><p>Thank you "black sheep" for the encouraging review and to the others who continued reading and adding to their fave stories and alerts!<p> 


	6. Chapter 2c Olympias

Chapter 2c "Queen Olympias"

"**A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts." (Washington Irving)**

In the last two or three months Olympias had encouraged Hephaestion to spend more time with Cleitus. She had always known that the black warrior had deep feelings for her sweet boy and that it had been quite difficult for him to hide them lately as Hephaestion had turned into a very handsome young man, with a slender but strong body and his looks were stunning. He was not only a gift for the eyes but also for any person's mind because he could talk about almost everything with deep knowledge; he was also a good and patient listener, accepting advices and showing an old head over his young shoulders and that virtue had made him very popular and well appreciated among the elder soldiers in the Army.

Hephaestion had accepted her suggestion gladly; he had always had a little crush on the brave warrior, Cleitus had been his model of soldier since he had met him for the first time nine years ago. He also had to admit that he was easy on the eye with his strong and muscled physique and pouring self-confidence and bravery.

Olympias had also dropped some hints about Alexander's needs to find a good Macedonian woman to marry and have his own children to perpetuate his name. Olympias had also listened to Hephaestion sigh deeply whenever the topic arise, he used to look at her and nodded, remaining quiet for a long time after that. Those sighs broke the queen's heart completely but she knew she was doing her best to keep her sweet boy away from sadness and pain.

The queen had realized that Hephaestion's feelings for Alexander might have deepened, leaving aside their friendship and transformed them in pure love. But she did not want her sweet boy to suffer because of love, she had lived and still lived with that suffering in her own flesh and blood, she knew really well all the ordeals and responsibilities that entailed being a king's consort and, due to Alexander's personality, Hephaestion was prone to suffer a lot and due to his kind personality, he would face and accept anything that Alexander sent his way and she truly knew that it would not always be good and pleasant things.

Olympias also remembered that in those days Cleitus had decided to finally speak to Hephaestion and offered himself as his prospective erastes. She never knew exactly what happened at the barracks that day but she knew that Alexander had thanked Cleitus for looking after his beloved and had kissed Hephaestion on his lips in front of him and the pages, claiming Hephaestion as his soon-lover-to be in that very explicit way. Even though Hephaestion had been surprised by Alexander's reaction, he had not pushed him away; on the contrary, he had accepted the prince's kiss and kissed him back.

Cleitus was grumpy and totally distressed and unbearable to speak to after that and so the following day he was gone in a recognition mission that would take at least a month, a long period to calm his hot reactions and accept his pretty boy's unspoken refusal. Olympias also learnt later that the brave warrior had tried to drown his sorrow in uncut Macedonian wine later that first night but he ended up confessing his unrequited love for a handsome man, whose name was never revealed by the drunken man, to anyone who happened to ask him why he wanted to drink himself into oblivion.

Meantime, Alexander and Hephaestion were both so happy and smitten with each other that they did not pay too much attention to what was happening around them; they only had eyes for each other and if they used to spend too much time together before, since that moment they were never seen separated.

A week before the incident at the barracks, Olympias had received a letter in which Hephaestion poured his heart out about his confusing feelings towards Alexander and he recognized that what she said about Alexander's responsibilities to his future kingdom was important and logical but he also expressed that he could not help having very deep feelings for the Macedonian heir. He also admitted that he was fighting hard to stop those feelings but that hiding them was making him sick and with a heavy heart. He had also tried to look at other people as possible mates but everyone was faulty when compared with his Xander. He also confessed that he was feeling guilty because he thought he was betraying the trust she had put on him and that was breaking his heart too. He felt hopeless and lonely.

Olympias, seeing her son suffer so much, tried to soothe his pain by not talking about the subject, especially because she remembered the promise she had made to him when he was seven, and in her longing to keep him by her side, she was hurting him deeply.

A week after the incident, the queen received another letter, this one written by a very much in love Hephaestion who was feeling invincible because the Macedonian prince and heir to the throne had chosen him, over the rest, as his beloved, to share their dreams and spend their lives together.

The brunette young man wrote in this letter about his deep feelings for Alexander, describing how his heart skipped a beat whenever his prince was near or how his skin got flushed whenever Alexander looked at him with his two-coloured eyes full of love and desire. He also added how he would do up to the impossible to be always by Alexander's side and be everything he needed to achieve his goals and he would help him to become the greatest king of all times.

When Olympias finished reading the letter, she realized that Hephaestion loved Alexander deeply but she also knew that his brunette son had a wise head over his shoulders and that he would be able to control Alexander and be able to take care of himself at the same time.

Later that day, mother and son crossed their paths in a dark corridor of the palace. Alexander, who was coming from a banquet held in order to receive new ambassadors, was a bit tipsy but seeing his mother coming his way, he did not hesitate in making her stop and have a short conversation with her. In very few words, he let her know that Hephaestion was his and only his and that she should keep her ideas to herself because he did not want and he would not tolerate that she poisoned His Phai's mind with her strange and delirious ideas. Olympias was deeply hurt by Alexander's words and she remained in silence because she did not want to wedge a rift between them and she also knew that if she defied Alexander, Hephaestion would be the one suffering.

Alexander had again taken her sweet boy away from her, most strongly this time because the prince had made use of a powerful weapon against her, the love she felt for her sweet boy and so everyday that went by, Alexander was getting more powerful and stronger and she could easily anticipate and fear that it would be Alexander the one to poison Hephaestion's ears and put him against her, manipulating him and taking advantage of Hephaestion's love and loyalty towards him.

But Olympias wanted to think that Alexander had not realized yet that under that calm and submissive attitude of Hephaestion, there was a strong willed man, ready to act according to his own ideas and beliefs whenever he was needed and the time for his intervention was the correct one. She knew that he would never be abusive and that he would always take into consideration the needs of the majority of the people but she also realized that when Hephaestion set his mind onto an idea, he would pursue it until the last consequence, putting other's wellbeing before his own if it was necessary and he would always be ready to take those hard decisions that no one would dare to take, even if any of them put him in direct danger. She knew that his loyalty rested on Alexander but that he would remove it if his king acted irrationality or without mercy towards his own subjects or even his enemies.

Olympias, seeing the strength in her sweet son's eyes, promised to herself that she would stand next to him for the long run and that she would always be ready to help him, with her words and opinion or with her silent presence.

Time proved her that her assessments about Hephaestion's personality were more than correct. When her king was murdered by Pausanias in front of the crowd gathered to honour him, her sweet boy had stood next to Alexander all the way. As soon as the brunette had realized that Alexander was shocked and frozen due to the recent tragedy of having his father dying in his arms, she saw him, from the opposite side of the arena, square his strong shoulders, take the crown from the dirty floor, cleaned it with his own chiton and commanding Alexander to stand up, he helped the former prince to compose himself and setting Philip's crown on his head, he made Alexander king of Macedon. Olympias realized that from that moment onwards, Hephaestion would be THE man behind the power and, if he wanted, he could be the king.

Olympias suffered deeply when she saw her two sons departing for the conquest of the Persian Empire. She was very confident on her sons' abilities but danger and death did not make a difference between common men and royalty. She offered the gods a big sacrifice in order to ask them for their protection over them. Hephaestion greeted her by embracing her tightly and setting a kiss on her tear-stained cheek, no words were exchanged in that moment; they were not necessary.

Alexander, as opposed to his lover, greeted his mother coldly; he was still thinking she had had something to do with his father's death and not even the logical reasons that Hephaestion had explained, he could not take that idea of his mind. It was a cold farewell but the queen wished him well too.

Teary green eyes followed the strong frames on their horses but her eyes stayed longer on Hephaestion while her heart died a little thinking that that might have been the last kiss she got from her beautiful son.

Olympias returned her gaze towards the box on her lap, she had received many more letters from Hephaestion and she had also written many to both of them, Hephaestion's always longer and filled with many more endearment terms. She set her eyes on a letter, a very long one that was also written by a very sad son.

In it he retold his mother about Alexander's sudden marriage to the Bactrian princess Roxanne and all the events that had happened since then. He also poured his heart in it, telling her about his deepest feelings and how selfish he felt because he wanted his king to be only his.

Tears ran along the slightly wrinkled royal cheeks because her dear son was suffering and she was not there to comfort him; she also knew that if she asked him to let her go to him, he would refuse, the travel was long and dangerous and her safety was really important to Hephaestion. So she suffered on her own while her son suffered on his, both trying to go on with the lives.

But now, the Macedonian widow and former queen had received this disturbing letter and as she had patiently waited for the right moment in the last ten years to offer her help, she knew that her waiting had finally come to its end. She would go to help her sweet son and they would find a solution together, the two of them would help Alexander to come back to his sense again and acted as the great king he was always meant to be. If that was no longer possible, with great sorrow and pain, they would take a drastic measure and remove the ill element to preserve the unity and greatness of the Macedonian empire. They would not allow that a weaken ruler threw all the efforts and sacrifices everyone had made to be in the position of power they were in that moment.

The eagle should have to fly well again or be put down without giving it a second thought.

TBC

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	7. Chapter 3a Ptolemy

**CHAPTER THREE: PTOLEMY. **

"**A friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future, and accepts you just the way you are."**

The tall blonde Companion looked at the scene before his eyes and could not believe it, as well as all the rest of the companions present at the banquet. The heated conversation ended in tragedy and he could only fix his eyes in the only man who had acted as quickly and efficiently as he always did. The blue-eyed Companion had grabbed Alexander from behind, wrapping one of his strong and muscled arms around the royal waist and the other around his chest. He had also pushed Alexander backwards, trying to separate him from the horrific scene before his still clouded-by-wine eyes. He saw how the man whispered something onto his lover's ear and how the king of the known world bowed his head, letting it hung downwards until his chin rested onto the upper part of his chest. The king looked at Hephaestion and whispered something, Hephaestion just nodded and with a reassuring squeeze to his right hand, he let him go.

Hephaestion had started to give orders on Alexander's behalf when he suddenly turned towards the door when he listened to what his king and lover was saying to the eunuch Bagoas. Hephaestion had already tolerated Alexander kissing Bagoas on his lips when the Persian dancer finished his performance earlier during the banquet, as he had also tolerated the Persian boy's presence in their bed; he still considered it their bed even though there were not so many the nights the brunette spent there. He had also tolerated Cleitus's insults directed to his person, calling him Alexander's lap dog and blind by his almighty lover. He had tolerated because he knew that Cleitus was feeling left out and wounded by the king's decision, a decision Alexander had taken even though Hephaestion had been strongly against it. But Alexander's confession made his stomach revolt inside his body and had hurt him more than all the things that had happened before that moment.

"You are the only one I need by my side, Bagoas, my sweet lover" and hugging him tightly Alexander went away but before exiting the banquet hall he ordered Hephaestion to take care of the mess.

Ptolemy saw how his friend's cerulean eyes were filled with wrath and with a feeling he had never seen in them before, he saw tiredness with a strong hue of disappointment in them and that feeling made his eyes look darker and bright less.

Ptolemy had always been one of the very few people who could read Hephaestion's eyes easily. That thought and the ongoing situation took him twenty years back in time, to the exact moment when he saw those outstanding sky-blue eyes for the first time.

The tall blonde and long-nosed boy was doing his morning running when he stopped to catch his breath. He had always been a curious boy and so when he saw two horses and a cart entering through the protection walls of the palace, he went closer to meet the newcomers. King Philip was already outside his palace and he hugged the tall man firmly while patting him between his shoulder blades. Not far from the two men, there was a tall and skinny boy standing next to Cleitus, who had been previously speaking with the king, their conversation interrupted with the arrival of that tall man and his son.

What called Ptolemy's attention was that the boy was talking really animatedly with Cleitus, something that did not occur everyday. The tall blonde approached a little more because he wanted to know what those two were talking about, but when he was near, his gaze got lost into the sight of two blue eyes; they were as cerulean as the Mediterranean Sea or a clear summer sky. He was also mesmerized because those blue eyes reflected pride and interest and they were set onto Cleitus. He could also distinguish the peaceful features in the boy's face while talking to the black warrior, something he had not been able to achieve yet when Cleitus was near him; he had never been able to mask his fear and Cleitus knew about it and found it a pleasure to torture Ptolemy with his presence and giving him dangerous looks with those big black eyes of his. Before the little boy could notice his presence, he turned back to his duties as one of many of Philip's pages, promising to himself that he would find out who the boy was and what he was doing there in the palace.

His curiosity was answered later that day, during his evening meal with the rest of the servants at the kitchen palace. Many of the older pages, who were getting ready to leave their duties in the palace to follow the army in the new conquest, were talking about the presence of General Amyntoros and his son Hephaestion, who would be left under the custody of the royal couple until his father came back from his diplomatic mission to Athens.

One of the those elder pages mentioned that Cleitus had looked rather shocked by the boy's presence and eloquence while talking with him and that he had also gone as far as to mention that the boy possessed the most amazing eyes he had ever seen. That kind of comment was really strange as Cleitus was well-known for his rude talking and little consideration to beautiful things, being the only exceptions his swords or young willing women. So Ptolemy knew that he had not been the only one bewitched by those eyes and he felt a kind of relief. Nevertheless, he would look for another opportunity to have a look at them as soon as it was possible.

The next morning arrived quite soon and a still sleepy Ptolemy entered the dinning room carrying a heavy tray, filled with jars with milk sweetened with honey, pieces of hot and crusty bread and some sweet biscuits made of oats and raisins. The blonde page was setting the goblets on the table without paying too much attention to that mechanical action when a soft "Thank you" reached his ears and brought him back from dreamland. He looked downwards and his bluish and faded eyes were met by deep sapphire ones, shining with kindness. Those eyes were the outstanding feature of the oval face, which was framed by loose bronze tresses that caressed the narrow shoulders of the boy sitting down. Ptolemy tried to give his thanks back but he could not find the exact words to do it so he kept staring back at the brunette with the bluest eyes he had ever seen and after some seconds, a very tiny sigh escaped his tight lips. Hephaestion smiled back at him and his eyes shone more, if that was possible and a light blush covered his still soft skin. Even though he was a child, Hephaestion was accustomed to receive that kind of appreciative looks but he always attributed them to the strange colour of his eyes.

A loud snort was heard from behind and Ptolemy turned back to find the little prince looking at him with fury in his two-coloured eyes. He was about to ask him what his problem was when Alexander decided to enlighten him.

"Hurry up, Ptolemy, I could starve to death if you were slower and stop looking at Hephaestion, he is MY friend and no one else" said the little prince with so much confidence and possessiveness in his voice that most of the people sitting at the table turned to look at him, included the same Hephaestion.

"Don't worry Alexander, I can have other friends and that will not mean that I have to stop being yours" explained Hephaestion so clearly and so Ptolemy could see by himself what Cleitus had said about the easy way that Hephaestion had with words; even though he had only lived seven springtime.

"But I want you all to myself, Phai, you promised that you would always be by my side, forever and one day more" said Alexander pouting and biting his lower lip to add more emphasis to his claim.

"And I will honour that promise Alexander but it will be a heavy burden for me if you do not allow other people to be my friend, just think what will happen to me when you get tired of my presence and look for others' company?" the small brunette tried to reason with the stubborn prince but he soon realized that it was like fighting a lost battle.

"I will never want another person by my side, you are the only person I want to have beside me in my moments of joy and especially when I am in pain" that so vehement confession made Hephaestion hugged his friend tightly and he whispered into the prince's ear:

"And it will be my pleasure to be by your side forever, whenever you need me. I will be your rock Xander" said Hephaestion, with his cerulean eyes casted down.

In that moment, Ptolemy felt as if he were the youngest boy in the place and he had just been taken his newest toy away from him, he really felt punished because he had dared to set his gaze on someone who, according to the not so subtle words of the selfish prince, would never be his.

Alexander had made him clearly understand that Hephaestion was his and so for the first time, Ptolemy felt the bitter taste of loss in his young heart.

The people present in the dinning room saw how the two boys had committed to be together for the rest of their lives and how the brunette boy with the most amazing blue eyes would only have eyes for his friend from that moment onwards. Life would teach Hephaestion later that his devoted love was going to be despised by the very same person who had sworn, in front of many witnesses, to be his soul mate until Hades called them to the house of death.

TBC


	8. Chapter 3b Ptolemy

_**Chapter 3b: Ptolemy**_

"_**Friendship is a treasured gift, and every time I talk with you I feel as if I'm getting richer and richer"**_

Ptolemy shook his head to clear his mind of that so far away promise and he tried to concentrate on the current situation and how he could help Hephaestion to sort out the mess quickly and with the minimum consequences, not only for Alexander but for the whole empire. He offered to take the body of Cleitus away, back to his chamber and dealt with it accordingly to his action. That what was Ptolemy said to Hephaestion and then he saw those blue eyes filled with horror. Ptolemy backtracked his words in his head and he realized why he had seen that look in his friend's eyes: people who tried to put the life of the king in danger were sentenced to death by spear, that had been the cases of Pausanias and Philotas and then their bodies were left tied and in the open to rotten and be eaten and desecrated by crows and lesser animals.

He went to his friend and grabbing him by his forearms gently, he shook him until Hephaestion set his eyes back on the tall blonde's face. A silent conversation began and Ptolemy was taken back again to their past when they accidentally discovered that words between friends were sometimes overrated, especially when they had shared millions of words between them for the last twenty years. That single look also took Hephaestion back to that same memory and he let himself fall into those times when life seemed to be easy and simple and everything ran smooth and as he wanted.

Hephaestion was around nine years old when he discovered his passion for books, he had always liked reading or to be read, at first his mother Helena and then Olympias used to read to him when he settled in his bed to sleep. But now, as he was more independent and eager to learn more about anything, he used to devour any scrolls that his eyes caught sight of. Unfortunately, his pile of reading material was becoming lower and lower and he knew that he would run out of it soon. He was wandering around the queen's garden when he heard someone reading aloud. The voice was melodious, even though it was a male voice, but it made the correct inflection to add emotions and the change of tones made it easier to discover the change of characters. Hephaestion was mesmerized not only with the voice but also with the story; it was about a bold warrior and his lover who went to war in strange lands, to battle for their own benefit and their men, with the only intention to perpetuate their names forever. But one of the men seemed unhappy; he was crying due to his bad luck and cursing Fate because she had taken something precious away from him.

The blonde man who was reading aloud had listened to the tiniest sound behind some rosebushes and a glimpse of bronze and blue told him who the listener could be. So the reader put his heart and soul in his activity to make the reading better, adding extra feelings and nuances in his words to make it easier for the boy to recreate the images in his mind. After some minutes, he stopped to take a rest and took the opportunity to call his hidden listener. A very embarrassed Hephaestion appeared from behind the bushes and with his face hung downwards; he apologized in advance, even before Ptolemy had uttered a single word.

"You do not have anything to apologize for, Hephaestion. I have just called you to invite you to come nearer and sit on the bench next to Thais" explained the blonde youth who was trying to make Hephaestion look up so he could bask in those two pools of heaven.

"Thank you for inviting me and I hope I am not a nuisance to any of you" said Hephaestion looking at the young girl already sat there. She looked to her side but she did not pay too much attention to the blue-eyed boy, her eyes were set on her crush, her gorgeous Ptolemy.

"Not a nuisance but sit quickly and stay quiet because my Ptolemy is about to read my favourite part of all" said the red-haired girl, who was hugging her bent knees and she had let her chin rest on top of them.

" _But Achilles would not let the Myrmidons go, and spoke to his brave comrades saying, "Myrmidons, famed horsemen and my own trusted friends, not yet, forsooth, let us unyoke, but with horse and chariot draw near to the body and mourn Patroclus, in due honour to the dead. When we have had full comfort of lamentation we will unyoke our horses and take supper all of us here."  
>On this they all joined in a cry of wailing and Achilles led them in their lament.(…). Chief in all their mourning was the son of Peleus: he laid his bloodstained hand on the breast of his friend. "Fare well," he cried, "Patroclus, even in the house of Hades. I will now do all that I erewhile promised you; I will drag Hector hither and let dogs devour him raw; twelve noble sons of Trojans will I also slay before your pyre to avenge you."<br>As soon as they reached Agamemnon's tent they told the serving-men to set a large tripod over the fire in case they might persuade the son of Peleus 'to wash the clotted gore from this body, but he denied them sternly, and swore it with a solemn oath, saying, "Nay, by King Jove, first and mightiest of all gods, it is not meet that water should touch my body, till I have laid Patroclus on the flames, have built him a barrow, and shaved my head- for so long as I live no such second sorrow shall ever draw nigh me"_

At this exact point of the story, Thais released a deep and mournful sigh and added in a quiet whisper:

"Achilles loved Patroclus so much and now he does not know how to go on living without him. Isn't that true love? I wish I had a man that loves me a quarter of how much Achilles loved his beloved"

"You will find that man, Thais, do not worry but you are still a bit young" said Ptolemy trying to assure his young admirer.

"I have already found him but he has not realized about it yet. But please, go on reading a bit more" said Thais, blinking her green eyes at her lover-to-be.

Ptolemy looked at Hephaestion, who was in silence and had not uttered a word since the reading had begun. He had that far away look in his cerulean eyes and Ptolemy tried to bring him back to the present and to himself.

"Hephaestion, are you alright? Do you want me to go and fetch Prince Alexander for you?" asked Ptolemy, trying to hide the tiny feeling of jealousy if Hephaestion asked him to do that.

"It is not necessary Ptolemy, I am already among friends" said the brunette boy with a slight blush in his milky cheeks.

"By Zeus, Ptolemy, stop looking at the boy's eyes and continue reading!" protested the red-haired youth, throwing a hard look towards Hephaestion, who in that moment thought that if looks could kill, he would be dead.

Ptolemy smiled and giving his Thais an apologizing look, he continued reading aloud:

_- "Thus did he speak, and they did even as he had said. They made haste to prepare the meal, they ate, and every man had his full share so that all were satisfied. As soon as they had had enough to eat and drink, the others went to their rest each in his own tent, but the son of Peleus lay grieving among his Myrmidons by the shore of the sounding sea, in an open place where the waves came surging in one after another. Here a very deep slumber took hold upon him and eased the burden of his sorrows, for his limbs were weary with chasing Hector round windy Ilius. Presently the sad spirit of Patroclus drew near him, like what he had been in stature, voice, and the light of his beaming eyes, clad, too, as he had been clad in life. The spirit hovered over his head and said-: "You sleep, Achilles, and have forgotten me; you loved me living, but now that I am dead you think for me no further. Bury me with all speed that I may pass the gates of Hades; the ghosts, vain shadows of men that can labour no more, drive me away from them; they will not yet suffer me to join those that are beyond the river, and I wander all desolate by the wide gates of the house of Hades. Give me now your hand I pray you, for when you have once given me my dues of fire, never shall I again come forth out of the house of Hades. Nevermore shall we sit apart and take sweet counsel among the living; the cruel fate which was my birth-right has yawned its wide jaws around me- nay, you too Achilles, peer of gods, are doomed to die beneath the wall of the noble Trojans._

"One prayer more will I make you, if you will grant it; let not my bones be laid apart from yours, Achilles, but with them; even as we were brought up together in your own home, what time Menoetius brought me to you as a child from Opoeis because by a sad spite I had killed the son of Amphidamas- not of set purpose, but in childish quarrel over the dice. The knight Peleus took me into his house, entreated me kindly, and named me to be your squire; therefore let our bones lie in but a single urn, the two-handled golden vase given to you by your mother."

Another sob left Thais's lips and Hephaestion put a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her. She looked at him but did not say a word or try to brush his hand off. She seemed to have accepted the presence of the boy next to her on the bench.

Ptolemy continued with the tale and he knew that he had to do his best effort to show the love between those courageous warriors and how the lost of a beloved could affect so deeply to the one who remained alive.

_- " And Achilles answered, "Why, true heart, are you come hither to lay these charges upon me? will of my own self do all as you have bidden me. Draw closer to me, let us once more throw our arms around one another, and find sad comfort in the sharing of our sorrows."_

_He opened his arms towards him as he spoke and would have clasped him in them, but there was nothing, and the spirit vanished as a vapour, gibbering and whining into the earth. Achilles sprang to his feet, smote his two hands, and made lamentation saying, "Of a truth even in the house of Hades there are ghosts and phantoms that have no life in them; all night long the sad spirit of Patroclus has hovered over head making piteous moan, telling me what I am to do for him, and looking wondrously like himself."_

Thus did he speak and his words set them all weeping and mourning about the poor dumb dead, till rosy-fingered morn appeared. (…) Achilles ordered his brave Myrmidons to gird on their armour, and to yoke each man his horses; (…) The chariots went before, and they that were on foot followed as a cloud in their tens of thousands after. In the midst of them his comrades bore Patroclus and covered him with the locks of their hair which they cut off and threw upon his body. Last came Achilles with his head bowed for sorrow, so noble a comrade was he taking to the house of Hades. When they came to the place of which Achilles had told them they laid the body down and built up the wood. Achilles then bethought him of another matter. He went a space away from the pyre, and cut off the yellow lock which he had let grow for the river Spercheius. He looked all sorrowfully out upon the dark sea, and said, "Spercheius, in vain did my father Peleus vow to you that when I returned home to my loved native land I should cut off this lock and offer you a holy hecatomb; fifty she-goats was I to sacrifice to you there at your springs, where is your grove and your altar fragrant with burnt-offerings. Thus did my father vow, but you have not fulfilled his prayer; now, therefore, that I shall see my home no more, I give this lock as a keepsake to the hero Patroclus."

_As he spoke he placed the lock in the hands of his dear comrade, and all who stood by were filled with yearning and lamentation. The sun would have gone down upon their mourning had not Achilles presently said to Agamemnon, "Son of Atreus, for it is to you that the people will give ear, there is a time to mourn and a time to cease from mourning; bid the people now leave the pyre and set about getting their dinners: we, to whom the dead is dearest, will see to what is wanted here, and let the other princes also stay by me." (Fragments of the Iliad, XXIII)_

Ptolemy stopped reading at this point because his voice was faltering. He closed the book and reverently set it on his lap, with one hand caressing the leather cover. It had been a gift of his father, a very expensive one, as a prize for joining the army so successfully. He spent hours and hours reading and his biggest dream was to follow his king to strange and exotic lands so that he could collect and write his experiences about those campaigns and travels and also to bring scrolls from every city or land they visited, in that way he would have the biggest library of all times and he would lend his books to anyone who wanted to read or study them with only one condition, they would be treated with care as any piece of culture should be. He had not realized that he had said all those words aloud until he found himself looking at an astonished Hephaestion who was looking back at him with fascination; he had found the mutual point of interest that would bring them closer, in spite of their age difference, books would make them brothers in words!

TBC


	9. Chapter 3c Ptolemy

_**This is the last part for Ptolemy's view about Hephaestion. Hope you enjoy it! Thanks for the alerts and reviews on this story and i'd like to see more comments about it.**_

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 3c "Ptolemy"<strong>_

_**"True friendship comes when silence between two people is comfortable". (Dave Tyson Gentry)**_

And that was how these two new found friends spent many hours together, reading to each other, Hephaestion with a little more difficulty than Ptolemy due to his age, and exchanging their feelings towards the excerpts they had read. It was frequent to see both of their heads, one blonde and one brunette, resting side by side onto the bark of the ancient trees in Olympias's garden, nodding at the same lines and sharing a knowing smile. Both friends were always spied by another blonde, shorter and younger than Ptolemy but as much in love with Hephaestion as the current companion. However, as years went by, the jealousy this particular younger blonde felt had not grown excessively because he truly understand the true nature of the relationship between Ptolemy and his Hephaestion. Apart from that, Thais kept Ptolemy in a short leash and at the very first wanton look he sent towards the brunette, the red-haired woman put him back onto the right track by withholding what he enjoyed most: her presence and company in his humble house.

Ptolemy learnt to cope with Alexander's possessiveness and how sometimes the prince and later the king acted childish to reaffirm not only Ptolemy but also to the rest of the companions that Hephaestion was only his.

However, the long-nosed companion had never been able to stop admiring the clarity of mind reflected in Hephaestion's eyes, especially when he was able to express his ideas and speak his mind freely, a situation that Ptolemy had only seen when Hephaestion was studying in Mieza with master Aristotle, the only person except Alexander who had seen the real value of this brunette and how intelligent and kind he was, it could be said that even though he had spent only seven years with Amyntas, he was the spitting image of that noble man and that he would honour the surname Amyntoros as much, if not more than his father.

But now, in this stressful situation due to Cleitus's murder, Ptolemy had just realized that his dear friend was speechless and that was a very bad sign, because if Hephaestion, who was a master at stringing his words-pearls of wisdom- to form the most logical ideas and express clear concepts and orders, could not utter a coherent thought, it could mean two things: Hephaestion was so tired that his mind could not catch up with the situation or he was tired of being always the one cleaning after his king's mistakes.

Because of this, Ptolemy decided to speak up his thoughts and let the blue eyed General put his mind and ideas in order as soon as it was possible for him.

Hephaestion came back from his childhood and youth memory, a reminder of happier times and a more relaxed lifestyle, because Ptolemy's voice brought him back by telling what he so desperately needed to hear as he was still short of words.

- "Hephaestion, listen to me carefully, it does not matter what Alexander thinks about this whole situation, he is not here anymore so we will organize this as we desire, thus we will bury Cleitus as a warrior and a companion, we will build a pyre for him and he will be sent to cross the Styx after the wake and funeral rites are over; we will place the two gold coins on his eyes to pay Charon for his trip to the underworld. We will also pray to the gods so they could feel mercy for our companion and honour him in his last resting place."

"Will you help me with all this mess, my brother? I really need your words in this time of pain and grief because it seems that I have lost mine in the middle of this madness and confusion" pleaded Hephaestion to his friend who could not take his eyes from the sad blue eyes that were clouded and empty.

"Tell me what you need and it will be done" said the blonde companion while searching around the banquet hall, assessing the reactions of the people still present and watching for further dangers.

"Do what you have just told me about Cleitus's body and I …" he hesitated for a moment.

"You go and comfort Alexander, who I am sure that by now he had recovered his sense and he is mourning his steadfast friend and General deeply" explained Ptolemy because he really did not have to listen to Hephaestion's words when he could so easily read the worry in his eyes.

But Hephaestion did not get the opportunity to go and comfort his lover because he had chosen another one for that mission and he had spoken up his desire quite loudly so anyone in the banquet hall could have missed his statement.

The brunette lover and loyal General realized how the people present gave him sad looks due to the king's drunken behaviour and he felt ashamed and so deeply wounded that he could not utter a single word, not even one to defend himself from the ironic looks that some of the men were giving him. And acting completely different from when Philip was murdered, Hephaestion did not stay but he left the banquet hall quietly, his head high in the air, with that royal posture of his, without letting anyone know how hurt he was and how fed up he was of his king's childish reactions.

Another memory crossed Ptolemy's mind, the one when his dear friend crowned Alexander king of Macedon under the watchful look of his mother Olympias and the rest of the companions. In that delicate situation, Hephaestion did not hesitate a moment to crown his lover as the new king, especially because his mind had run all the possible things that could happen to Alexander if the situation was not solved in the following moments, especially because Attalus had been long speculating over the crown and desiring the title of regent on behalf of his niece's unborn child over Alexander.

Ptolemy had seen the calm in Hephaestion crystal blue eyes and the certainty that his friend had taken the right decision and done the most logical thing in a moment of great pain and despair for the rest of the people attending the ceremony.

Ptolemy crossed eyes with Hephaestion and a slight nod let Hephaestion understand that his elder companion was happy and supportive of the decision he had taken on behalf of the still-shocked Alexander. Ptolemy knew that, since that very moment, he would never question any of his brunette friend's decisions and that he would be there by his side, assisting him in everything.

Coming back from old memories for the second time that night, he saw Hephaestion moving away from the scene.

When Hephaestion was near the heavy wooden doors, he turned round and acknowledged Ptolemy with a nod of his head; striking blue and pale blue eyes met and it was no longer necessary any more words between them.

Hephaestion had "spoken" and Ptolemy would carry out his duties without hesitation; it was the only thing he could do to soothe his friend's temper and the disillusion of finally loosing his love to a Persian slut as he had already lost it when Alexander married the Bactrian princess. Ptolemy had been by Hephaestion's side for a long time that day, reassuring him with gentle pats onto his back and an animated conversation, far from any possible topic that could bring more sadness to those teary blue eyes.

Hephaestion had accepted his comfort because he knew that Ptolemy meant him well and as brothers in words, they did not need to pronounce many of them to understand each other.

Back to the present, Ptolemy started to carry out those unspoken words and so in that way he would be able to help his friend when he was feeling himself so lost.

TBC


	10. Chapter 4a Cassander

_**CHAPTER 4a: CASSANDER.**_

_**Envy consists in seeing things never in themselves, but only in their relations. If you desire glory, you may envy Napoleon, but Napoleon envied Caesar, Caesar envied Alexander, and Alexander, I daresay, envied Hercules, who never existed." Bertrand Russell quotes**_

The other handsome General with blue eyes got closer to the enraged king to assist him but he was beaten, once again, by Hephaestion who was already there by hi side. Hate and love could be seen in that companion's always icy-blue-eyes, so different to the ever warm blue ones of the man who was hugging and comforting the king, who was clearly in distress.

However and in spite of his own sanity, Cassander, son of Antipater, realized that only Hephaestion could control Alexander when he reached that stage of wrath and anger; it seemed as if the king of the known world became blind and wanted to destroy everything and everyone that was on his path, without thinking about the consequences his crazy and illogical reaction could bring, not only to himself but also to his empire. And as usual, there it was the sharp-minded brunette, ready to clean after his king's dirt, willingly to accept the responsibilities of his ruler and to deal with them until Alexander was well again to do it by himself, and never expecting a reward for a job well done.

Seeing that prompt reaction to help and cover his king's mistake brought Cassander back to another time when he saw a seven-year-old boy do the same for a capricious and spoiled Macedonian prince.

Cassander met Hephaestion six months later than the rest of the companions. He had been travelling with his father for some months and when Antipater decided to go back to the palace to debrief king Philip about his discoveries and alliances, Cassander decided that it was time he went to see his friend Alexander. Even though he was the same age as the prince, Cassander had being instructed by his father and mother to be extremely nice to the prince, especially because they wanted him to join the royal family not only as a companion but also, if it were possible, as the prince's lover. Rumours had arrived to that noble house that the little prince was a very easily influenced boy and so there was the opportunity for Antipater's family to gain more power over the rest of the Generals, power he would use to raise among them and finally get all the things he had been working so hard to achieve.

Cassander arrived at Mieza and went directly to the palace to look for his friend. He bathed quickly and wore his best chiton and short cloak; he really needed to make a good impression and he knew that he was not hard to look at. He asked a page to be led towards the prince's chamber but when he arrived to the destination, he found out it was empty. He had to retrace his steps and asked again for Alexander's location, and that made him a bit angry. He took some minutes to recompose his volatile mood and looked for someone else to help him. A maid that was passing by told him that the prince was taking his classes in the open classroom by the fallen pillars with Master Aristotle at that moment and that he would be there until noon. Cassander walked up the low hill and saw his former companions listening carefully to their teacher who was explaining and drawing something on the ground. Six pairs of eyes turned round as soon as they listened to quick footsteps and four out of the six faces were crowned by broad smiles; one of the remaining ones showed only close set eyes that followed the advance of the newcomer. This last boy smelled trouble in the horizon and he was ready to fight. The other pair of eyes didn't leave his teacher's sight.

Master Aristotle greeted Cassander and invited him to join them in their discussion about human nature. The handsome brunette was about to sit when he discovered that there was a new face he had never seen before. In very few seconds, he assessed the new student and thought that, for the first time, he could be in the presence of a trouble-maker. He stood in front of Hephaestion and asked rudely:

"Who are you?"

"I am Hephaestion Amyntoros" answered the boy back with a soft voice.

"Ah! You are the poor orphan" Cassander said sitting next to Alexander who looked at him with an angry look in his two-coloured eyes.

Hephaestion lowered his head and did not ask for an apology but Aristotle saw the pain in the sky-blue eyes. He was about to call Cassander's attention due to his impoliteness when the tall brunette was pushed from the stone seat and fell on his back with a loud thump. He lifted his gaze and he saw his prince staring back at him with a lethal look; nevertheless, he decided to ask why he had done that while standing up and dusting his chiton off. Alexander simply replied that he had been rude and that no one treated his best friend in that way. Cassander looked again at the brunette next to the prince and saw why Alexander was so smitten with him. This Hephaestion was absolutely gorgeous and a serious rival to his father's so well orchestrated plans, especially because this boy had already captured his prince's heart, something that Cassander had never been able to; in fact Alexander had only offered him his friendship because he had been ordered by his father and king.

Aristotle saw the interaction among the three of them and sighed deeply, he would have to prepare himself to live harsh times with the two brunettes mooning over the blonde prince. However, Hephaestion had only showed, up to that moment, only feelings of true friendship and gratitude towards the prince, totally sincere and unselfish, just the opposite of what Cassander wanted to achieve.

The class was over and Aristotle dismissed his students until the following day but he reminded them to leave those valuable scrolls in a pile next to him so then he could take them all together. He also told them that if he found a damaged scroll, they would be severely punished for not being careful with such valuable material. In his hurry to stand up after his forced fall, Cassander had grabbed Alexander's leg to prevent a tougher fall and he had made Alexander step onto the scroll and tore its upper left corner. Hephaestion saw the distress in Alexander's eyes when he discovered this and the prince was about to assume his fault when Hephaestion turned to Aristotle and showing the torn scroll, he offered his apologies. Master Aristotle had secretly seen how that situation had evolved and he had really wanted to know how the three of them would solve the incoming problem; he knew, deep in his heart, that Hephaestion would be involved, taking a major role in it.

Aristotle was not surprised when Hephaestion assumed his fault and endured his punishment without uttering a single word. He received two hits on the palm of each hand with a short and rigid cane that left a deep red mark that started to swollen almost immediately.

Alexander was on the verge of saying that it had been him who had torn the scroll with his foot but a single look from Hephaestion stopped him. He nodded, acknowledging his friend's sacrifice, and stayed quiet. He lowered his head because he could not tolerate seeing those cerulean eyes full with tears and Hephaestion's lower lip quivering, trying to muffle a painful sob. He had remained in silence during the punishment and after it, repeating his apologies once the ordeal was over.

When Aristotle turned around, he discovered that Cassander had already fled; his dirty conscience had made him run towards the safety of the palace and the teacher saw how Alexander picked his and Hephaestion's books in one of his hands while he supported his friend with the other arm resting over his shoulder. They started to walk and Alexander immediately whispered words of comfort and apology into his Phai's ear. The brunette nodded and went on walking, snuggling his side nearer Alexander's body as if the prince were able to absorb the pain he felt in his hands.

Aristotle felt badly about the situation but it was a good lesson for the prince and also for the rest of the companions because it had showed him and them too that no matter how close you were to the prince, you would receive the punishment you deserved. He also wanted this to be a lesson for Hephaestion, who had been quick to take a responsibility for something he had not done in order to protect his prince; the little brunette had to learn that sometimes he had to let Alexander fight his own battles and clean after his own messes and mistakes, that the little prince could not always hide behind his position and assume that punishment would never touch him because he was a prince. Alexander had to learn that his mistake could hurt badly the people he loved but that they were still willing to accept blindly the punishment for him.

Later that day, Aristotle learnt that Alexander had taken Hephaestion directly to his chamber and left him there while he ran towards his mother's chamber looking for an ointment to heal his Phai's hands. He went back to his chamber, cleaned the palms with cold water and dried them with a soft cotton cloth and then spread the cream softly over them. When the treatment was over, Alexander took his friend by the arm and made him lie on his bed so he could rest. After some minutes, he asked Hephaestion why he had said that it had been his fault and the blue-eyed boy said that Alexander had stepped onto the scroll because he had defended him from Cassander's attack and had not seen where he put his foot. Alexander accepted the explanation but he made Hephaestion promise that he would never do something like that again because he could not tolerate seeing him in pain. Hephaestion said that he would try but that he could not assure him that he would not do it again. The prince looked at him with admiration in his eyes and so decided that from that moment onwards they would share the responsibilities of their acts, no matter who was the responsible. Hephaestion accepted gladly, without knowing that he would play the hardest part of that deal.

Cassander could not hide his distaste for the newcomer but he had learnt that Alexander was truly and deeply fond of him so attacking him directly would not the best tactic. So he decided to gain the brunette's trust by being nice and polite with him. What he did not take into account was that Alexander might see him as a threat.

Cassander decided to start with his plan that same evening. He went to the brunette's chamber and knocking softly on the wooden door; he opened it and let himself enter. What he saw shocked him, Hephaestion's room was really Spartan, he had so few belongings that it seemed more like a servant's room than of a Prince's companion. He was also confused because they had told him that he was resting so if he was not there, he could not think where else he could be. He hit his own forehead with an open palm; of course, the little prat would be with Alexander, playing ill and all needy, in Alexander's chamber.

He left the bedroom and started to walk towards the prince's chamber that was just at the end of the corridor, three doors from Hephaestion's. He entered the room after a brief knock on the door, and he was shocked for the second time that same evening. The mighty Macedonian prince Alexander was knelt beside his own bed, with his head resting near Hephaestion's ear while he murmured soothing words to his sleeping friend. The small left hand was grabbing his best friend's forearm while his right one was caressing up and down the soft skin of the arm resting next to him on the cot.

Even from the distance, Cassander could see the redden palms and winced in pain, that should have hurt a lot and he thought that he might not have been brave enough to accept that punishment, not even for Alexander. He had been raised among riches and spoiled rotten by his mother; he had been born to feel pleasure, never pain, no matter what advantages a little pain could give him.

Listening to the small gasp, Alexander lifted his head and looked towards the intruder's direction and his eyes went dark with anger, there it was the only guilty person of his Phai's pain, because due to Cassander's rude introduction at the beginning of the class, Alexander had stepped onto the scroll and tore its corner which it led to Phai's punishment.

"What are you doing here, Cassander?" hissed Alexander.

"I came to see how Hephaestion was doing" the other brunette explained, trying that his voice sounded convincing and worried at the same time. He knew he had to play his cards well in order to fall into the prince's good graces again.

"Why do you care about his health when you were so mean and rude to him before?" asked Alexander, still caressing his friend's arm.

"Because … because I wanted to apologize?" said Cassander, knowing that he was losing more points with Alexander than gaining them.

"He is doing well, he does not need you here and if I see you treating him like this afternoon again I swear by all the Olympians that I will rip …"

But Alexander's threat was interrupted by a muffled whisper:

"Xander, please … "

"What Hephaestion, what do you need?" asked Alexander turning to look at his friend's face.

"I really need you to calm down, it hurts when you are like this" answered Hephaestion, opening his eyes slightly.

"Like what, Phai?" Alexander asked with concern.

"As if you are going to be out of control" whispered the blue eyed boy.

"NO, don't worry, Phai, I would never lose my temper with you, never" promised the blonde boy with tears in his two coloured eyes.

"Alright, Xander" Hephaestion accepted his friend's assurance and he drifted back to sleep.

The young prince turned round and thanked Cassander for his visit but he dismissed him immediately after saying that Hephaestion needed to rest to gain his health back.

Cassander nodded and retreated in silence, knowing very well that he had been defeated by the new boy, who with a simple request had been able to control Alexander's ire.

TBC


	11. Chapter 4b Cassander

_**Thanks for the lovely reviews, alerts and favourite addition! For those reading, I'd really like to know what you !**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>CHAPTER 4 b: CASSANDER.<strong>_

"_**Envy shoots at others and wounds itself" English Proverb.**_

Cassander was again in the present seeing how Hephaestion had been able to calm, at least, for some minutes the angered king.

But differently to other times, he realized that Hephaestion was battling more than usually to control the royal wrath; and it seemed as if he was losing the battle.

His mind took him back again to previous situations in which the blue eyed General had been able to control Alexander as easily as if he were a little boy and not a grown up youth or man later.

He remembered being told when there was that tiff between Cleitus and Alexander over Hephaestion's prospective lover and how a single kiss on the prince's lips had ended the argument in peace, with a minimum damage, especially to Cleitus's pride.

He remembered seeing with his own eyes the blow that Cleitus gave Hephaestion on Alexander's wedding day and how the queen assisted the brunette so swiftly; the action did not go unnoticed to him because his eyes were following the king's lover, trying to figure out when he was going to crumble under the day's actions. But Hephaestion proved to be stronger that anyone and had assisted Alexander and his new queen with the same efficiency as he always did all his tasks, no matter if they were menial or painful.

The taller brunette tried to gain Hephaestion's trust again and in that time he put into practice a new tactic; he knew that Alexander would not spend so much time with his lover as they used to so he would offer Hephaestion comfort and sexual release and once the blue eyed brunette were a very docile lover in his hands, he would make him do whatever he wanted and that would be to regain all the terrain he had lost since Alexander and Hephaestion had become lovers. Cassander needed to be in the middle of the important things, his father was demanding for more power inside the Macedonian royalty and Antipater was too old to achieve it by himself, that was why he had put all his confidence on Cassander but he had not been able to achieve too much in the last past years.

But Cassander had failed again and totally, he had been also afraid of losing his life when the brunette threatened him with death if he dared to put a finger on him again.

Cassander's flirtation and seduction plan started right after the wedding was over, he saw how Hephaestion was moving around the guests, trying to see if everything was in good condition, and then he stepped on one side, nearly hidden by a tall column that was supporting one of the extremes of the nuptial tent. Cassander rearranged his clothes and hair and he walked towards the forgotten lover with firm strides. He stepped behind him and taking Hephaestion's hand in his, he leaned over and whispered in his ear:

"Don't be sad, Phai, I am here and I will take care of you from now. I can also give you presents and I will never leave you for a woman"

Hephaestion's back was rigid and if Cassander could have seen the lethal look in the cerulean eyes he would have been able to realize of the mistake he had just made.

The brunette General turned round and looked at Cassander directly into his blue eyes. The companion was leaning forward as if he had the firm intention to take the brunette's lips between his when he listened to a very low hiss coming from the velvety lips in front of him:

- "Don't you dare ever again to approach me in that way and never again say something like what you have just said; if you do, I don't know if I would refrain myself from killing you on the spot. I don't need you, and if you believe that I am a piece of rubbish for the king, you are very wrong, we are friends and we will be friends forever and I wish him the best because he deserves it. Don't fool yourself, I am not a fallen lover, I know very well where my place is and it is next to the king. Now please relieve me from your presence, it makes me feel sick"

Cassander could not believe Hephaestion's words and tone, he had never talked to him like that but, just in case, he moved further from him to lick his wounds and to think in another plan to get his revenge on that man who believed he was superior than him.

But months went by and Cassander saw how the relationship between Alexander and Hephaestion seemed to flourish even more and how the brunette had also bewitched the queen who followed his movements the same way he followed her husband's. Cassander's twisted mind saw an opportunity there, maybe the young queen was developing feelings for the young General and if they were encouraged and supported, they might create a rift between the two men and Cassander would finally get his Alexander because he was sure that the king would never forgive such kind of betrayal, no matter if the man was his own lover.

Nothing happened and Cassander realized that Hephaestion would never develop any kind of feeling for another person than Alexander and even though he was his most loyal companion, Cassander had been able to see a tiny crack in their relationship, born from the very stubborn and erratic attitude of the king. He promised himself to be on the alert but hidden, ready to jump whenever the opportunity appeared.

The brunette had robbed the first opportunity from him but Cassander had realized that Hephaestion had lost a bit of his effectiveness in controlling his king and lover. If Hephaestion lost his touch, he would be ready to take the control.

The situation would prove him wrong because it was the king who was loosing his touch …. and his mind… and his control … in a word, everything.

TBC


	12. Chapter 5a Roxanne

**CHAPTER 5 a: ROXANNE.**

"**A lady's imagination is very rapid; it jumps from admiration to love, from love to matrimony in a moment." **Jane Austen, "Pride and Prejudice."

The moment that Alexander speared Cleitus, Roxanne covered her face with both hands; she did not want to see the poor companion in a pool of his own blood. She, as the rest of all the other people attending the banquet, could not believe that Alexander, who had been always considered as a fair man and ruler, had taken justice in his own hands driven by his blind anger.

The foreign queen had previously asked Alexander to behave more like a king and not as an inebriated common man. She had also added that he was making a fool of himself with that behaviour because he had kissed his lover not only in front of her but also in front of Hephaestion. She also reminded him that she would be looking forward to his visit that night because their baby needed to see him, at least once that day before setting him down to sleep.

But it seemed that all the conversation had been in vain. That last act of Alexander proved her right.

She took her hands from her face, took a deep breath and lifted her dark charcoal eyes towards the only person she perfectly knew could understand her and her pain. Dark nervous eyes met still-calm clear ones and she nodded. Hephaestion nodded back and, without words, asked her to move towards the safety of her chamber, especially because he thought things could get rougher and he needed to protect the queen, no matter that she was married to his lover, but it was his obligation because she was the mother of the Macedonian heir, something that Hephaestion, no matter had much he loved Alexander, could never give him.

In the calmness of her chamber, the queen looked at her baby sleeping in his crib and wished, once more, than the baby's real father was another one than the Macedonian king.

After caressing tenderly the brunette curls in the baby's head, she sat on her bed, her back resting onto several fluffy pillows and let her mind go back to the day before her wedding with Alexander.

Alexander had arrived at the place where her father's tribe had settled their tents to spend the spring time. As soon as Alexander appeared, he was immediately invited to a banquet in his honour. The chief organized it in a little less than five hours and he asked his own daughter to dance in front of the young king, mainly because he secretly had the idea of offering her hand in marriage to the young conqueror as a way of accepting his kingship but also to be protected from more powerful enemies who were still raiding the area.

The young woman saw the preparations with wonder; her father had never done a thing like that before so this Alexander should be a very important man. She spied from behind the curtains and saw many men coming and going, all of them wearing a light kind of armor. Her dark eyes followed two of those men especially, one blonde and one brunette, the latter slightly taller and bulkier than the other one. Both young men showed a great confidence in their firm gait and she was surprised because they kept a minimum distance between their bodies, their limbs in constant touch, and too much close for two grown-up men. It was a bit strange for her but she had heard before about that kind of relationship which was commonly practiced among young Greek men.

She decided to be bold for once and get out of her tent. However, before going out, she covered her head and the lower part of her face with a dark and thick cloth, neatly wrapped around her head and only leaving her dark eyes uncovered. She started to walk without making noise and got closer to the wandering soldiers; she finally approached the men who were looking at the enormous and varied display of traditional food and drinks.

While being standing near them, she spotted the brunette man once again and her eyes liked too much what he saw before her: sun-kissed skin with a dark golden hue in his arms and neck, blue clear sky-blue eyes, long bronze tresses but not as long as hers and a strong body with muscled limbs. She followed his movements and she saw royalty in them. She thought that she would not contradict her father this time when he offered the brunette her hand in marriage. She dreamt about giving him beautiful and strong children and she promised herself, that if this came true, she would be such a good lover, wife and queen that he would not miss having the blonde man as his lover. She would become his whole world.

Roxanne was so lost in her thoughts that she did not realize that the brunette was looking towards where she was standing, without moving an inch. When that dawned on her, she blushed deeply and a thin layer of perspiration covered her face and neck. Fortunately, her brunette could not see that as her face and head were still covered by the thick cloth. In spite of the uncomfortable situation, her eyes shone with desire and looked back at him but she got back a confused look, as if her signals were not totally understood, or worse accepted by the brunette. She thought that he might not want to be so open in his offer and intentions before he had arranged everything with her father. She went back to her tent, daydreaming about a handsome brunette who she wanted him to claim as hers.

The banquet was held in the open air, the weather was perfect for that occasion because the early evening was still warm and the sky was bejeweled with a million of twinkling stars.

Alexander sat in the front, next to Roxanne's father on his left and Hephaestion on the king's right. They were sharing some exotic food and wine when one man clapped loudly several times to call the presents' attention. Many women entered the space left on purpose in the middle of the area and formed a circle; all of them were wearing beautiful long dresses, in different hues of brown and orange; their heads covered with a kind of kerchief but the front was like a sort of net so they were able to see where they were dancing. That net also allowed them to see through it from the inside of the kerchief.

Roxanne started her dance with slow and sensual movements; her body contorted with the rhythm of the music from the drums and cymbals. The dance, as well as the music and her movements, became quicker. The sinuous moves reminded Alexander of his mother's snakes and he felt a cold shiver running along his spine. Hephaestion had the same image but the effect was completely the opposite of his king, a homesick feeling invaded his heart and made him feel lonely; he wondered if he might convince Alexander to spend the night together, just the two of them, reconnecting and recharging his poor self-esteem; he really needed Alexander, not any other person, to chase his sadness away.

Roxanne got closer to the principal guests while dancing the last chords of the music; she looked directly into those cerulean eyes that had invaded her thoughts since that morning and that had made her nether regions of her still virgin body stir with desire, a feeling she had never had until that very same day.

She started to dance in circles, twirling around her own bare feet and with each turn, her eyes focused once and again on Hephaestion, who realizing about the insistence of her gaze, began to feel uncomfortable and nervous. Roxanne, by the way, thought that her brunette's nervousness was due to her undivided attention. Her dance became faster and more frantic and she ended it on her knees, her backside resting on the heels of her feet and her dark eyes looking at her prey.

Roxanne's father and Alexander were a bit confused about her behaviour but they did not say anything, none of them wanted to make a scene. Roxanne saw the blonde soldier turned towards the brunette and said something in his ear and her blue-eyed god smiled nervously and lowered his head, his face covered with a deep blush but partially hidden behind his long bangs of bronze hair.

Roxanne stood up and greeted the audience who clapped her performance loudly. She left the place and went back to her tent to refresh herself, get changed into something more comfortable and revealing, a kind of dress that could show her brunette the body hidden under it, her wide thighs, her full breasts and long legs. She would also take some minutes to rest for a while so she could look fresh in front of his eyes.

She was about to go back to enjoy the banquet and her special guest when his father asked the rest of their guests to make silence because he had an important announcement to make. He stood up and with a strong voice he said that the great king Alexander had accepted his daughter's hand in marriage. He also added that the ceremony would take place the following day, very early in the morning as it was their custom.

Roxanne felt her heart jump with joy because her dream of the last hours had come true, she would be a queen but that was not the most important part, she would have that magnificent and handsome man by her side forever and even though he did not love her at the moment, she would do up to the impossible for that to happen and he would be proud of having her as his queen and wife soon.

As it was a tradition, she was enclosed in her tent as soon as the marriage announcement was made. Her personal maid arrived with her father's orders to stay inside the tent and offer her prays to the gods and ask them for a good marriage and for many strong children.

The maid who had been with Roxanne since her birth had tears in her dark eyes because her little "flower" was getting married and becoming a woman in very few hours. Roxanne hugged the old lady tenderly and whispered comfort words in her ear while she dried off her tears away from the wrinkled face. Tyla had been looking after Roxanne since forever because Roxanne's mother had died giving birth to her.

Both women, more calm after spending some time in each other's arms, started to sort out Roxanne's clothes, looking for the best attire for her wedding day. They left it outside the wooden chest and set it on a nearby chair; Roxanne decided to go to sleep because she would have a very long and emotive day the next time the sun came out and she wanted to look beautiful for her gorgeous husband.

TBC


	13. Chapter 5b Roxanne

**CHAPTER 5 b: ROXANNE.**

"**Women marry men hoping they will change. Men marry women hoping they will not. So each****is inevitably disappointed." **Albert Einstein.

Eos painted the sky rose announcing the beginning of the new day and Helios started to lazily appear on the horizon when Roxanne stepped out of her tent. She was beautifully dressed in a dark hue of terra-cotta robe with thousand of little brilliant stones sewed over it making intricate designs embroidered all along the nuptial robe. Her head was once again totally covered, hiding her very long and wavy black hair. Her hands were finely decorated with golden drawings and many of her fingers bore exquisite jewelry that showed her status as daughter of the main chief.

She started to walk towards the place were the ceremony was going to be held. From the distance she could distinguish her father talking to the blonde man again and she was a little confused and wondered why her father was paying so much attention to that simple General, perhaps he was the king's best friend and he was taking care of all the ultimate details to make their wedding ceremony memorable and unforgettable for the years to come.

The sound of cymbals and little drums announced the beginning of the ceremony because their sounds were used to beckon people to the ceremony place. Because her husband-to-be was a king already she had to wait for him as a signal of respect and obedience. So she was standing there, with her back straight as a rod, trying not to bend under the weight of her nuptial dress and robe.

Her head was lowered and her eyes were closed, assuming the submissive posture of a loyal wife and subject. She realized that her husband-to-be was coming her way because she could listen to the sound of cloth brushing against each other and the dragging of heavy footsteps due to the sturdy boots. She also listened when all the noise stopped and soon afterwards she felt a warm hand taking her right hand between two ones with calluses due to the constant handling of his sword and weapons. Her heart made a tiny flip and she did not understand why.

Her husband-to-be started to pronounce the vows that would join them and his firm and determined voice resounded in the place, showing his strength and power. However, the Bactrian princess was not totally pleased; she had internally associated a more baritone and melodious manly voice with his handsome features, but she was no one to criticize him, she should be happy and pleased due to the fact that he had chosen her, over the many offers he ha previously had, without having met or even seen her in advance.

She had been tempted to peep at her husband but she did not do it as she did not want to bring the gods' wrath over her and her marriage. She sighed deeply and only asked the gods to rush the ceremony so she could see and enjoy her husband.

The ceremony was over after the young princess had slightly nodded towards her husband. The newly-wed king cupped his wife's chin gently between his thumb and forefinger and lifted her head with extreme care. Her eyes were still closed and her face covered. He pushed the cloth covering it backwards, letting her long black hair fall in waves up to her narrow waist and then he gently asked to open her eyes to look at her husband for the first time and seal their marriage with a kiss on their lips.

As soon as she opened her eyes her knees went weak and, if it had not been for Hephaestion's quick help, she would have ended on the ground. Her frantic eyes moved from one man's face to the other, trying to understand what was happening and why that blonde General was holding her hands. Suddenly, as if she had been struck by one of Zeus's powerful lightning bolts, she realized her mistake and tears filled her charcoal eyes. Alexander took her tenderly between his strong arms and tried to soothe her by whispering comfort words, telling her that everything was going to be fine and that they would be happy and have strong and beautiful children. The poor king confused her sobbing with anxiety and nerves; time would let him know how wrong he was.

As soon as she listened to his words, she started to sob more loudly because it finally dawned on her that she had married the wrong man. She opened her red rimmed eyes, that had been tightly closed seconds before, and she rested her longing gaze onto her blue-eyed god who was standing some steps aside and looking at the embrace couple with resignation and pain in those two beautiful pieces of heaven.

Hephaestion held her gaze for a little while and then approaching, he bowed just a little to show her his respect and asked if he could be of her assistance; if there was something she needed in that moment. She looked at him and opened her lips to answer him but not a single word left her mouth. She tried again and a muffled **"Nothing, thanks"** escaped through her clenched full and red lips when all she wanted to scream to the four winds and for all the present people to hear was **"YOU, I want You"**

Acknowledging her answer, he nodded in silence, turned round and left towards a group of his companions who were standing a bit afar.

She followed his walk and saw a tall blonde with a peaked nose embrace him tightly and two other men, one tall and thin and another strong but fat dark-haired one slapping his back gently, as if they were comforting him.

Alexander asked her something and so she had to stop staring and looked at her husband asking him to repeat to her his questions. Alexander laughed loudly and told her that he really understood if she was feeling nervous and she just offered him a tiny smile, a shadow of the one she would have offered to the only owner of her heart. With the corner of her eyes, she saw how Hephaestion smiled when he listened to Alexander's laughter but as soon as he realized that she was looking at him, a sheepish expression darkened his handsome features and he left, as if he were running away from her. She felt how another stone added its weight to her already heavy heart and all she wanted to ask was to be let alone for a while so, in that way, she could cry her pain away and face her bright less reality and future.

But her wishes would not be fulfilled in that ill-fated day so she stopped feeling pity for herself and decided to try and see the bright side of things. She looked back at her husband, who was standing near her talking to her father's father, and giving him a small smile, she offered to go and fetch a drink for him. Alexander accepted gladly because his wife was feeling more joyful and he thought it was due to his calm attitude towards her and his patience for her acceptance of the new situation.

Roxanne had let her eyes wander around the place until she discovered her hidden brunette; he was there, still and looking at the guests when he was approached by another handsome brunette who leaned forward to talk to him. She saw his eyes fill with ire and the other brunette left his side quite quickly as if he were in fear of the General's reaction.

She took some minutes for herself and then, on her way towards the table, she spotted her favourite brunette again but that time he was in the company of a tall and bulky man with jet black hair and beard, who was talking quite loudly, as if they were having a row. Hephaestion leaned forward to give his answer to the other man but instead of receiving an answer back, he got a blow to his face and it ended with a cut on his lower lip and a thin trail of blood running towards his chin.

Roxanne did not doubt for a second, she move quickly towards her brunette and pushing Cleitus aside, she made Hephaestion sit on a nearby boulder; she took a clean handkerchief from one of the sleeves of her dress and wetting its corner in a goblet with water, she began to clean the thin track of blood with care while her other hand held his face gently in place. Hephaestion, feeling extremely embarrassed, tried to stop her doing by saying that she was the queen and she should not be doing that; apart from that it had been a tiny injury for her to worry so much about it. As he was going to go on protesting, she shushed him by placing one of her small fingers over his velvety lips, but what she really wanted to do was to set her lips onto his warm ones and kiss his wound better.

Seeing his protest as a lost fight, Hephaestion kept still until Roxanne finished with her ministrations and then he blushed deeply when she said that as His queen, she had to look after her subjects' wellbeing.

Hephaestion thanked her profusely and walked away, leaving a distressed queen who had tasted happiness for only thirty seconds.

Alexander saw the scene from afar and instead of feeling threatened, he was rather happy that his wife and his lover were getting on well.

Time went by and the cacophony of the celebration was dying out when Alexander realized that he had not seen Hephaestion for a long time. He decided to leave the party and go in his search. After looking for a while in the surrounding open areas, he decided to look in the most logical place and that was how Alexander found his favourite brunette, sitting on Alexander's bed in the royal tent, his arms resting on his legs and looking downwards at something cradled inside his strong hands.

Alexander came closer to his own bed and knelt in front of his lower, between his open legs and asked him if he was feeling fine.

Hephaestion lifted his face; red rimmed eyes were the outstanding feature of his face beside his split lip. Alexander did not know what to do to comfort him and assure him that everything was going to be the same between them; that no woman would ever be in the middle or be a threat to their love for each other.

TBC


	14. Chapter 5c Roxanne

**CHAPTER 5 c: ROXANNE.**

" _**More marriages might survive if the partners realized that sometimes the better comes after the worse". ~Doug Larson**_

Through the years, especially after they became lovers, Alexander and Hephaestion had talked thousands of times about this outcome, about Alexander's need of having a wife who could give him a successor, an heir to his throne and follower of the Macedonian culture and customs; but in spite of their numerous talks, none of the lovers were content with the situation and both were suffering not only for themselves but for the other too. So finding Hephaestion here, in his chamber, made Alexander feel worse than ever, realizing in that very same moment that he was not ready to lose his steadfast friend and lover.

Alexander did what he knew Hephaestion needed best; he made him stand up and hugged him tightly, bringing their bodies together from foreheads to toes. They lost count of the amount of time they had been embracing each other, giving and receiving comfort from their simple presence and nearness.

In a moment, Hephaestion stepped backwards and with his eyes still bearing unshed tears up to the bream, he raised his hands and opened one of them showing a piece of dark cloth firmly tied. He opened it reverently and took out a jewel, a big yellowish and orange stone set in a thick gold ring. Alexander looked at it with surprise but he got the meaning of the jewel quite quickly so he lifted his left hand and offered it to his blue-eyed lover and soul mate. As Hephaestion was sliding his gift on the king's left ring finger, he started to speak with his baritone voice, an octave lower than his usual tone, and retold the story of the ring, a ring bought in Egypt and according to the jewel merchant; it belonged to the time when the sun was worshipped by the Egyptians. Hephaestion kissed the ring, now set on Alexander's finger and whispered that he would always be the Sun for him and that he wished he had many and healthy children to perpetuate his name and continue expanding his ever-growing empire, apologizing for not being able to fulfill that dream by himself.

Alexander, now with tears in his two-coloured eyes, grabbed his lover's hands between his and kissed every knuckle with reverence and love. He whispered that if he was the sun for Hephaestion, Hephaestion would always be his Moon, his steadfast soul mate and companion until Hades called them down to the house of death.

Both love confessions made the men feel needy and they hugged again tightly as if they wanted to fuse their bodies together.

Alexander loosed the embrace a little and threw his head backwards. Hephaestion did the same and was about to end the hug when Alexander leaned over and captured the rosy lips with his. Long was forgotten the split lip when their mouths crashed together, moving frantically against each other, trying to rub and make the other open them so their tongues could travel from one hot cavern to the other and enjoy the simplicity of being together, kissing and loving each other.

A noise outside the inner chamber interrupted their kissing, they stepped away but not quick enough to prevent Roxanne seeing them in their tight embrace and kissing their life out of them.

The newly-wed queen stepped inside the chamber and stopped her walking some metres away. She saw, with pain in her eyes, how her blue-eyed god had dry tracks of tears staining his gorgeous face and how his cerulean eyes were haunted with despair. She then looked at her husband who had a guilty expression on his not-so-handsome face and dared to hold his gaze.

She took a deep breath and, asking her maids to let them alone, she asked if he loved him. Alexander simply replied _**"He is Hephaestion"**_ as if the simple mention of the man's name were the only correct answer. But what none of the men realized was that the queen's question had been directed to Hephaestion and not to the Macedonian king and her husband. She did not want to spot the mistake to them because Hephaestion's face had his own answer written all over his face. He loved her husband with all his heart and she would never be the owner of his heart, no matter how hard she tried.

Hephaestion apologized for his intrusion, stepped back and went away, leaving Roxanne and her world much more colder now that he was no longer inside the chamber. Alexander did not know how to make up to his wife after his own display of endless love towards his most precious General.

The young king sat on his bed, on the same spot where he had found Hephaestion moments ago. Soon after, he felt the cot sink and his bride sat next to him; he looked at her and offered a tiny smile that was well received and returned.

In the few moments between Hephaestion's departure and that moment, Roxanne's mind had worked fast and efficiently; she thought that this Alexander should have something valuable inside his heart if her Hephaestion loved him so much and so due to her love for Hephaestion and the brunette's big love for Alexander, she, Roxanne the Bactrian princess and since that very day Macedonian queen would sacrifice her life trying to satisfy the man her beloved loved so deeply.

Roxanne took Alexander's hands and made him stand up; she started to undress him very slowly until he was completely naked, only the ring was on him. She took his left hand between her smaller ones and gave a loving look to the jewel; Alexander misunderstanding her gesture asked her if she wanted him to take it off, that simple gesture would break his heart in halves but he would do it if she asked. Roxanne, understanding really well how important the ring was for him, shocked her head and lifting his hand towards her lips, she kissed it reverently without knowing that the brunette's lips had also left a kiss there moments ago.

Roxanne smiled and took Alexander towards the bed again where she let him take her and so in that way they consummated their marriage. However, her mind was not there in the chamber with her husband; it was next to her brunette, keeping him company in that moment of pain and sorrow for the two of them because they could not be with the person that held their hearts.

Days went by and Roxanne could start enjoying Hephaestion's company without being severely affected by his closeness. Hephaestion could not find a reason inside his heart to feel hate against Roxanne who had been only gentle with him, a fact that did not go unnoticed by some of the most observant companions such as Ptolemy and Cleitus, by different and personal reasons.

The long-nosed blonde General was terribly worried about Hephaestion, he considered himself the brunette's best friend and confident after Alexander and to whom Hephaestion turned whenever he was feeling nervous or a bit blue. He feared his friend's heart would not tolerate the situation and that he would turn invisible and faded away in the shadows. He was firmly determined to look for any sign of deep distress and help his friend in any possible way while the new situation went on bothering his mood.

Black Cleitus had a more selfish reason, now that Alexander was out of the game trying to satisfy his young wife and produce an heir as soon as possible, especially before they started to prepare for the next campaign, Hephaestion, his "pretty boy" would be alone and he would be there to comfort him, keep him company and fill that vacant space left by the king.

Of course he needed to do a lot before that; he should start by apologizing for his blow to his handsome face and he could have also offered to kiss the split lip better but that nosy queen had jumped instantly to take care of the injury as if it had been a mortal wound. He had also noticed how the queen's dark eyes followed "his" pretty boy's movements as soon as he entered a place and pouted slightly whenever he was not near or in her presence.

He also realized that she tried really hard to include him in any conversation she was having, not only with Alexander but also with whoever she was talking too. She listened to every word that left Hephaestion's lips with so much attention as if they were extremely necessary for her to go on breathing, and Cleitus would do anything to stop the queen's worshipping directed towards his brunette if she became greedy or too anxious and careless.

But it was a lost cause; Roxanne kept her loving adoration, in silence, hiding her deepest desires.

Every night that Alexander visited her in her chamber and made love to her, it was a sacrifice; one she endured because during the whole lovemaking she thought about a softer skin, more slender fingers, long bronze tresses and clear blue eyes as if by recalling the image of her unrequited love, she would achieve the miracle of bringing him there for real.

But one night, in the thrown of passion, she was careless and a muffled **"Phai"** escaped through her clenched lips. Luckily, Alexander's loud moans covered her mistake and he continued thrusting and releasing his seed inside her. She pictured Hephaestion's image with every thrust of her husband and she asked her gods and to any other that could listen to her plead to grant her that only wish.

A naughty goddess listened to her pray and laughed madly.

Nine months later, Alexandros was born and when he opened his eyes to see the world for the first time, he showed to all the people present there the bluest eyes they had ever seen. Alexander was mad with happiness, his first baby was born healthy and he was a boy and the best of all was that the baby had his grandfather's eyes, a clear sign that his father was looking after him from the afterlife and so lifting the baby carefully over his head, Alexander announced proudly that his son had the eyes of a king.

Roxanne saw the ever presence of Hephaestion who was looking at the newly-born heir with love in his eyes; she sighed deeply and with happiness running all over her still tired body, she stared back at another king, the blue-eyed king of her heart.

That last memory, so recent, brought her back to the madness that was still happening outside and even though she knew she had to pay his respect and obedience to her husband and king, her mind and her heart knew better, she would follow, with her own child, her blue eyed General until the edge of the earth if that was what he wanted and needed.

Time would prove her right in her assumptions soon, sooner than she had expected.


	15. Chapter 6a Aristotle

**CHAPTER 6A: MASTER ARISTOTLE.**

"_**Education is the best provision for the journey to old age" Aristotle.**_

Six months before Amyntas and Hephaestion arrived at Mieza; another newcomer set his foot in the picturesque village. His presence was truly appreciated by the Macedonian king Philip because, as he had told to the bald man before, he would be able to imprint his words, his knowledge and his rational way of thinking to a group of boys who would be brought up to be the best in the uprising Macedonian society; the best not in the sense of the Athenian Aristos, king Philip needed not only brave men and good soldiers, he also wanted thinking men, men who in a moment of danger could take quick and efficient decisions, not only to save their own lives but also their companions' lives. Philip had clearly thought and told the old teacher that men who could think on their own were less likely to be manipulated by anybody and they would always be ready to fight tyranny, if the occasion arose.

Aristotle was surprised by Philip's modern ideas. In Athens, everybody had a very poor opinion of this king in the making, as they used to call him; they thought he was just only a brute, living through a spell of good luck as regards his conquests and the successful submission of his weaken nearby peoples.

So when the great teacher was approached by the "barbarian" king, he thought about rejecting his offer plainly. However, after listening to his ideas, he found them to be quite interesting and a real challenge. Apart from that, it was not very frequent to be able to teach to the heir to a throne and future king and the top offsprings of the Macedonian nobility and Army members.

So Aristotle, having agreed before to meet him and the students by springtime, set off his journey with a cart filled with books and scrolls and all his reading and teaching material, ten wooden chests and only one bundle of clothes. He settled down at the new complex that had just been built and furnished for that purpose. The area included classrooms, a gymnasium, a wrestling palestra, a garden with an orchard and the chambers where the students would be lodged in pairs.

The main part of the complex was a kind of little palace that had rooms for the king and queen whenever they came to visit, it also had a big kitchen and a supplies storeroom and in the outskirts there was a little market and many trails around gardens and grass areas where they could take their lessons whenever the weather allowed it.

Aristotle met Alexander first informally when he was received by king Philip as soon as he had arrived. When the introductions were over, Aristotle organized the delivery of his belongings to his chambers and classrooms and decided to take a rest after his long journey.

The little prince, who had penetrating and quick eyes, kept looking at every single movement the teacher did; Aristotle was a famous teacher but he was also known as a very neat and clear speaker with wise words and they were also accompanied by few hands movements but very precise, a good quality for anybody who was over his fifty autumns and in not so perfect physical conditions as the rest of the people in the school.

Alexander started to talk to Aristotle and the old man was truly amazed at Alexander's oratory, even though his utterances were according to a boy of his age, the logical sentences he formed were the ones belonging to an older boy. Aristotle realized that the little prince would be a truly challenge in itself, he could affirm that not only by his words but also by looking at the prince's two coloured eyes, a not so common feature on a human being but if he recognized the truth of the myth about his eyes, that little boy, sitting next to him, would become a very powerful king, if not the greatest, and he would be able to reign and rule over two different empires.

The boy had a curious mind and his questions were quite smart and accurate; he was the perfect kind of student and on top of that, he gave back to the teacher as much as he received from him.

Aristotle met the rest of the students that very same afternoon, in an informal introduction, as well, but they did not make a big impression on him, it was natural that after talking to the prince; the rest of the boys would be quite dull for the old master. However, he tried to spend that afternoon in their company in one of the gardens, sharing some food and drink and a chat, especially because he always thought that when people were relaxed, they truly showed themselves and if they wanted to hide or mask any of their reactions, they would be quite slow for his quick eyes.

So after some peaceful hours in the company of his young charges, Aristotle could begin to discover some features, at least the most outstanding, of each child. He could see that Alexander was curious and with a strong will; Ptolemy was serious and responsible; Philotas was secretive but devious, Nearchos was joyful and absent-minded, each of them held unique characteristics but altogether they were a nice group of young boys ready to learn and be taught. It was also his goal to make of them a tight and neat support group for the young prince, friends that Alexander could rest his confidence on and receive wise advice from, especially in his times of need or danger, and Aristotle knew that there would be lots of those moments during the life of Alexander.

Classes were quite interesting; at the beginning they were a bit difficult, not only for the students but also for the teacher, but they started to get better as soon as they all became accustomed to each other and they could all find and share their strengths and reinforce their weaknesses.

Finally, after some classes, they had all acquired a very fluent and nice group dynamic; mixing subjects, theory and practice and it seemed that that controlled atmosphere could be easily broken with the arrival of another student, who was more than eager to join them in spite of still feeling sad due to his recent loss. Hephaestion had taken some days off to recover from his mother's loss and the departure of his father to his diplomatic mission. He had not started the classes with the rest of the companions; he had met only two of them, even though he was living with the royal couple and Alexander.

The first impression that Aristotle had of the newcomer was that if Alexander's two coloured eyes could speak, Hephaestion's cerulean ones could do it louder. Master Aristotle had met many people along his years but he had never seen eyes like those, eyes with a look older than their true age and especially not being part of such a harmonious body. The boy had a magnetic personality even though he showed a very calm and reserved attitude; that magnetism towards him was a natural force and Aristotle did not know if the boy would be happy with that gift in the years to come; that magnetism could give him many things and also get him into many problems. Time would only tell how well the brunette boy could handle it.

Almost every child felt under the enchantment of the tall and slender brunette as soon as soon as he had appeared but Aristotle soon realized that one of them had already fallen really bad and deep. Alexander looked mesmerized by the blue-eyed boy, so badly that when Hephaestion greeted him with a tiny bow, the prince could not utter a single word or prevent the boy from bowing, a practice that was not followed by the Macedonian royalty. Apart from that, Hephaestion had never greeted his friend like that but Hephaestion had done it to show him respect in front of the rest of the companions and his teacher.

Aristotle saw the look on the two-coloured eyes and he laughed to himself. If his prediction, based on that single look, was right, two half souls had already met to form a single one and become soul mates bonded for life.

Alexander reacted to his own immobility a few seconds later and made Philotas move to leave an empty space for Hephaestion, so that they could sit side by side on the stone bench. Philotas started to protest, his always bellicose mood ready to explode at the mere provocation, but a single look from the prince stopped it before it escalated further. Hephaestion was standing there quietly, without moving as he did not want to cause any problem between his newly-met classmates. He was about to choose another place, next to Nearchos, when Alexander grabbed his wrist gently and stood up, leading him towards an empty place with enough space for the two of them to sit down together. Both boys sat very close to each other, as if their closeness could bring the reassurance they were in need in that moment.

Aristotle, through that simple gesture, could see how their relationship would be: a more impulsive and decided prince guiding gently and a calmer and steadfast friend following him without asking for a reason or questioning the action.

Both boys sat side by side and Alexander set his own books between them, on their laps, and the prince shared his things with Hephaestion who had not been given his study things yet; simply because no one wanted to put more pressure on the still mourning boy.

After that small disturbance, the class continued in the same way it had been before. However, Aristotle realized that he had acquired another fast student, a real rival to beat the prince but he also knew that due to the pacific and shy behaviour of the newcomer, Alexander would still be leading the group. Aristotle saw how Hephaestion mouthed the answers as soon as he made the questions to reflect on them and that silent gesture was immediately followed by Alexander's responses; the only difference between both boys was that Alexander spoke them up so he was the only one heard by the rest.

The old teacher wanted to listen to Hephaestion's answers in his own voice but he did not want to embarrass him so he would give him a day or two to settle down and feel more confident; meanwhile he would think further about the topic and he would try to design a harmless tactic to make him speak comfortably and at his own pace. But the little prince beat him quickly, the blonde boy had realized that his friend had got all his answers well and quite fast but that he had remained silent; so when Aristotle started to ask again and the same result happened, Alexander elbowed the brunette gently on his ribs encouraging him to say the answers aloud.

Aristotle saw with great joy how Hephaestion followed his prince's suggestion and he could also see the broad smile that crowned Alexander's face when he listened to his teacher praising the newcomer's correct answers. The Athenian teacher was sure that Hephaestion could elaborate and go deeper in his answers if asked gently and so he tested his theory obtaining amazing results; this boy was a true jewel and the best acquisition, at least for now, for the prince and his knitted group of future companions and brothers in arms.

Even though Hephaestion was still a young boy as the others, he was accustomed to be among adults so his thoughts and ideas contained deep knowledge of the topic in questions and he was used to speaking with accurate words, not only being appropriate but also revealing a good use of them. Because of that last revelation, Aristotle was truly convinced that Hephaestion could become a wise and useful diplomat, even a ruler, if he were brave enough to defy his king whenever the blonde was wrong.

Time would prove him right because in the years to come, Aristotle would see many times in which Hephaestion had exerted a kind influence on Alexander, leading him always towards the best choice, if not the only acceptable one.


	16. Chapter 6b Aristotle

_**Chapter 6b "Aristotle"**_

A month after Hephaestion's arrival, bad news arrived for the little brunette, his father had been ambushed and killed on his way to the diplomatic mission to Athens on behalf of king Philip. A dark and sad atmosphere could be sensed around the boy and he had not been able to find solace anywhere and with anybody. Aristotle tried to speak to him, explaining the difficult topic of life and death but the brunette only lifted his big but bright less cerulean eyes towards him and sighed deeply, without uttering a single word. What worried most was that not even Alexander had been able to take him out of his state of depression and if he could not do it who else could, he wondered while sitting in the open garden that belonged to the queen. Suddenly he listened to hushed voices and sobs nearby and he decided to go and see what was happening. To his surprise, he found the brunette curled up on Olympias's lap while the young queen showered his ears with comfort words and peppered his face with loving kisses. Aristotle realized that that was what Hephaestion needed, another person taking care of him as he was always doing that for other people, mainly his prince. Hephaestion would take a severe punishment from his master the same day that Cassander arrived in order to thank his prince for his intervention due to the harsh remarks made by the other brunette.

Both nine-year-old boys made a hard team to beat, they always paired up together and there was no way to set them in different teams because they did so many tricks until they came back together. Luckily there was no competence between them, only that helpful and sporadic nudge to act and the old master laughed again internally because it was natural for those boys to agree immediately over almost everything as no one could be against their own soul.

One summer day, when the blonde prince was still nine but the rest were already ten years old, Aristotle approached Hephaestion while they were working in their homework and asked if it was possible to have some words with him when the class was over.

Hephaestion hesitated for a while before answering his teacher, not because he was afraid of him but because he was going mentally over his timetable for the day. As soon as he realized that his afternoon was free of activities or duties, he agreed on meeting his master later. Having his answer, Aristotle lifted his gaze and found a pair of two-coloured eyes looking back at him with a serious expression in them, he also saw, in a slow motion, the prince's lips moving to form words and the unasked question of why he needed his friend for but that question never left his mouth and the royal lips closed almost immediately as soon as he found his best friend looking at his direction with clear eyes, full of shared dreams and trust. Alexander smiled back that tiny smile of his, the one reserved for his Phai only, and patting Hephaestion's thigh, he sat nearer to his friend, legs touching from thigh to knee. Hephaestion smiled back again and casted his blue eyes down. Aristotle saw the exchange between those two newly-born soul mates and he realized the new dynamic between them, now that their bond was getting stronger and more intimate: a possessive Alexander who claimed his soul mate as often as possible and the selfless devotion and love of a calm boy, born to live for and accompany one of the future and more powerful man in the world. Aristotle was totally sure that he would see that pair of boys as young grown up men standing at the top of the known world, looking down at the empire they had both conquered and put together as a unit, under the rule of Alexander and his ever present counselor Hephaestion.

Aristotle shook his head, trying to get rid of those prospective images, and left the boys alone, especially out of deference for the young prince so the boy could put his mind at ease and concentrate on his studies once more.

When the class was over, Alexander, having forgotten the previous situation, grabbed his books and started to walk towards the wrestling arena, he was in need of good exercise. Some paces further, he looked back because he had not listened to his friend's light footsteps or seen his slender and slightly taller body next to him. That was when he saw Hephaestion talking to Aristotle really animated, his hands clapping madly as he continued listening to his teacher's words. When the talk was over, Hephaestion threw his still thin but long arms around his teacher's waist and hugged him tightly, with his head resting over the old man's chest. Teary and old light blue eyes looked down at the brunette that was still embracing him; the old teacher took a deep breath and petted the boy's shoulder-length hair. When the boy looked up, Aristotle made a motion movement towards the spot where Alexander was still standing, nailed to the ground, and whispering something against the boy's ear, he ushered him to go to his prince's side, without missing the boy's laughter. Alexander was still looking at his teacher with cold eyes but they warmed immediately as soon as his brunette Phai caught him by his forearm and challenged him to run towards the hot spring baths.

Aristotle breathed deeply again and knew that the task he had proposed to Hephaestion would be a real challenge, not because the boy would not be able to do it but because he would have to hide it from Alexander, something that the brunette was not very comfortable enough in the beginning but that he had finally agreed to do as it was something for his dear Xander.

The project began the following day and Alexander saw with desperation how the secrecy and shared whispers grow between his Phai and master Aristotle. Apart from that, Hephaestion started to spend all of his free time with the Athenian teacher, the very same time that he used to spend with the prince.

Alexander was plainly and deeply afraid of Aristotle, he thought that he was the only man who could take his Phai away from him, especially if the blue eyed boy decided to accept willingly that kind of relationship born from the communion of two souls sharing knowledge and a lifetime together. Even though Alexander was still a boy, he had long realized the importance of Hephaestion in his life and he really needed the brunette by his side forever and he had once promised Zeus that he would do anything to keep the situation like it should be, Alexander and Hephaestion, together, until the end.

He had already thrown out of his way two or three former threats, people near his heart that had wanted to take his Phai away from him and he had obviously been successful. They were his mother, Cleitus and Ptolemy and he would not hesitate a single second to go against his teacher if the same situation arose. Everybody had to see it clearly: Hephaestion was his and no one else's.

The resentment grew deep inside the Macedonian heir's heart and it was translated into hard remarks against the poor teacher who could only endure this situation because he had hold out his patience in order to not reveal the secret he shared with Hephaestion.

By his part, Hephaestion tried to spend more time with Alexander but the deadline for his project was due in some days and he had still a lot of work to do to finish it in time. So Hephaestion started to disappear and escape to his hiding places all over Mieza but as Alexander knew about them all, he was always able to discover where his Phai was. But Hephaestion had always had a good hearing and even though Alexander was very stealth in his movements, by the time the prince could get closer to Hephaestion's hiding place, the brunette had already put away what he was doing and was waiting for Alexander to appear with a broad and innocent smile on his lips and a naughty sparkle in his sapphire eyes. That really frustrated Alexander deeply and that was easily seen due to the constant pout in his face but at the same time it made Hephaestion enjoy every single moment of his secret.

After working hard for several months, the project was finished in time and ready to be given to the guest of honour. Hephaestion was really nervous and at the same time anxious and excited and every other feeling in between. In a moment of panic, he thought the receiver of his gift might not like it but there was Aristotle, telling him words of confidence and trust. The teacher told him that the present would be more than well received and truly appreciated.

Philip and Olympias were giving a banquet at Mieza to celebrate Alexander's tenth birthday. Many people were invited to the party because Philip wanted that people could get accustomed to hearing Alexander's name in association with the Macedonian king and so in that way Philip would let them know that they were no brute but refined and educated, especially by the presence of the highly and well-known Athenian teacher as their mentor.

Aristotle had instructed the prince and his friends in the palace and banquet protocols in advance with the purpose of making them feel more relaxed and confident and to give a good impression to the guests assembled there. Those lessons had been the hardest, all the boys were more comfortable with a sword or any weapon than with polite words and those gestures but they had achieved the basics quite well, except Hephaestion who had excelled in it, feeling like a fish in water.

Queen Olympias had helped the old teacher in everything connected to the very few female participants and she had also refreshed the basic etiquette rules to her own husband too.

The banquet was a very big success, everybody was pleased with the education of the Macedonian offsprings and their parents did not stop praising their children's manners and education.

The time for presenting the gifts to the prince had finally arrived and they made a long queue with the most expensive gifts in their hands. The prince was sat between his father and mother in a lower throne and he accepted the gift and listened carefully to the explanation given for each of them. After looking at them carefully, he thanked the bearer and he passed on to the next one. But Alexander could not stay quiet longer because the only gift that really mattered to him was the one his Phai was going to give him and he was dying there waiting and the blue-eyed boy had not helped at all when he had stood at the end of the queue, with Aristotle by his side.

The queue was moving slowly and Alexander's anxiety had grown to astronomically proportions. Alexander saw the sheepish expression on his friend's face and he got more nervous because he could not discover why his friend had suddenly felt so bad.

Encouraged by Aristotle, Hephaestion got closer to his prince and best friend and offered his own gift, without looking at Alexander.

"I know that it is not as magnificent or expensive as the other presents you have already received but it is what I can offer you and I think it could be very helpful in the future"

"I know that I would like it, no matter if it is not as expensive as the others, I would like it because it is yours" the last words were spoken nearly in a whisper because the prince did not want to offend any of the other people present.

"In fact, it is my and master Aristotle's gift" added the brunette looking at the man still standing by his side.

"I have only suggested the idea, my prince, he did all of it but we all know how humble our Hephaestion is" explained Aristotle to the young birthday boy.

"I know better than no one else how humble My Phai is, you don't have to remind me" answered Alexander back, still mad at his teacher.

The prince opened the expensive piece of cloth that was covering the present very carefully, unwrapping it, he discovered a large rectangular kind of box with a lid made of a thin wood but that looked quite resistant. Once the prince opened the box using a tiny golden key on its lock, he looked inside and his eyes opened so wide that it seemed that they would not fit in his face. He took out a thick book and its cover was made of brown leather with his name painted on it in a very clear and identifiable handwriting. A drawing of a little forget-me-not was the dominant art on it. Alexander loosed the fine leather strap that was keeping the sheets together and opened its first page to discover what the book was about. It was the collection of all the healings herbs, seeds and plants in existence; each page for one herb, organized by alphabetical order with a clear drawing of the specimen fully developed and a smaller drawing of its buds, seeds and flowers if they had them. It also had a description of its healing powers as well as its possible side effects, the way to prepare the concoction and where the specimen could be located and in which season of the year. It finally added different ways of preservation and the way to reproduce their natural environment with the goal of generating the specimen.

With every page that Alexander turn, he could not get over his surprise due to the exhaustive project his friend had done just for him. His astonishment grew as well as his love for his Phai, because no one but him could have designed such a wonderful and practical book, basing his gift on the knowledge that Alexander was really fond of his hidden garden of herbs and his extensive understanding on the topic.

After appreciating his gift for some minutes more, Alexander realized what all that secrecy had been about and why master Aristotle had spent so much time with his friend.

A warm feeling invaded his heart and it spread all over his body, making him feel a bit drunk with joy. He stood up and hugged his friend tightly, whispering his thanks against his ear and then he looked at Aristotle over Hephaestion's shoulder and nodding towards his master, he offered him his silent thanks and apology.

Aristotle continued teaching to all these boys until they turned into teens, until they were grown up enough for them to leave, join the Army and take part in their first expedition.

When the moment arrived, always faster than he was willing but slower than his students desired, Aristotle was quite sad, his young "charges" had become strong young teenagers and they would become men after their first battle. He was really worried about their wellbeing and he knew he would suffer deeply if he got news about the demise of any of them before their time.

However, he knew that that was part of the difficult process of growing up so he would focus in the wonderful times and experiences that they had shared all together and he would also cherish to have been a direct witness of the developing relationship between the prince and his steadfast friend; a reunion of two pure souls and the foundation of a great love based on an exchange of respect and knowledge between both youths. As soon as their relationship turned into a physical one, this communion got stronger, unbeatable and what was more important was that Alexander would always be able to count with a sensible man beside him if he was smart enough to cherish and take care of his presence.

Hephaestion said goodbye to his teacher with tears in his eyes, he did not feel embarrassed to show his feelings, especially towards someone who had been a truly inspiration and an example to follow. He would miss talking to his teacher, especially about those things about Alexander he could not share with his friend as the prince himself was the topic of the conversation.

He promised the old man to go on in touch with him through letters, no matter how far away they were, he would write one whenever he felt the need to tell him something; he was going to keep contact using the same way he had with his "mother" Olympias.

The first letter arrived after their first battle. Aristotle could feel Hephaestion's despair mixed with excitement through the words written in those three pages. Hephaestion retold him the battle, his feelings during it, not only towards his friends but also towards his enemies. But most of his words were especially to describe his admiration towards his lover who had been extremely brave and merciful at the same time.

Many other letters followed that first one and all of them had the same constant: Hephaestion's blind trust on Alexander and his need to be by his side supporting him.

Aristotle also got letters from other companions, especially from Ptolemy and very sporadically from Alexander, and even though they explained about their incursions and travels, each of them, in their own style and according to their interests, had a meeting point in the figure of Hephaestion and his indisputable help and contribution not only to the Army but also to their lives.

So the old master visualized stronger images of what he had faintly imagined ten years ago, Hephaestion Amyntoros was becoming the strong man behind the power, the reason behind the force, the brain behind the impulse, the potential General behind the future king and Aristotle was totally and fully convinced that Hephaestion was The man that Alexander would always need by his side, especially when the so volatile and explosive Alexander needed someone to keep him grounded, not by the use of the force but through the use of words ad reason.

However, Aristotle also believed that Hephaestion could rise against his lover if the man was unfair or unable to govern or protect his subjects and kingdom. He was afraid of receiving a letter telling him that that had already happened, especially after getting a letter from Ptolemy announcing Alexander's marriage, Hephaestion's pain and solitude and the increasing rift between them, born not because they had stopped loving each other, that was an impossible fact, but because Alexander was acting in a strange way, as if his goals in life had been now stained by the power of the foreign gold and exotic lovers. He was also drifting apart from his Macedonian roots and the old teacher knew for sure that that fact would bring serious problems as well as any difficulty in keeping a comfortable relationship between both parties.

The last letter sent by Hephaestion confirmed Aristotle's fears; Alexander was losing his grip onto the real issues and was driven towards situations really far away from their dreams and wishes. Hephaestion also confessed that Alexander had been quite difficult to deal with lately, as if he was suffering of an internal disorder, this boosted by his quick changes of mood, his abnormal inconstancy and heavy drinking.

Ptolemy's next letter announcing and retelling Cleitus's death by the very own hand of Alexander, did not take the old teacher by surprise, he had seen the signs of chaos before in the young king but they had always been controlled … until now.

So Aristotle prepared himself to see the rebirth of the Macedonian empire under a new ruler. The death of Black Cleitus was the last hidden shout of an agonizing kingdom and that sad fact would give impulse to the raise of the General and the salvation of this dying empire.

Aristotle promised himself to be there, beside the General in every step he was about to give to regain the power and consolidate his position, this time standing proudly in the front, no longer hidden behind anybody.


	17. Chapter 7a Eris

**CHAPTER SEVEN: ERIS.**

The young and naughty goddess stirred in her sleep, her long and curly bangs of black hair were tangled with the blond ones of her lover's, her last night fling, in fact, a human who had caught her eye on her way back to her house in a corner of the vast Tartarus.

The Greek goddess of chaos and discord had been born beautiful but extremely naughty, always ready to provoke strife and gloat over bloodshed and disorder. It was really difficult to resist her charming personality and the weak human beings were her favourite pets because they ended up doing whatever she wanted. Her ideas were always bad ones for everyone except for herself because she nurtured from them. And it was more than normal that she always introduced herself as "I am Eris, the goddess of chaos, who had always people to con, places to destroy, and naughty things to do …"

Her last fling was a well-known and strong sailor who had been babbling about an uprising small kingdom in the northern lands of Greece and how the king of that area had been gifted with a male heir with eyes of two different colours. Eris got trapped with that fact and she decided that after some relax time at home, she would go and pay a visit to the little prince; she could do with one of them for her collection, especially if he was royalty.

The beautiful goddess got up from her comfortable bed and kicked her now useless lover out of it, but as usual, she gave him the drink of oblivion so in that way she assured herself that he would not remember going to Tartarus or to reveal the hidden location of Eris's household.

Some days later, Eris got up alone and restless, a quick tickling feeling was running along her body and she really needed something to mess up with, something to destroy, something to possess …

She remembered about the Macedonian prince and decided that it was high time for her to pay him a visit. What she had not decided yet was how she was going to appear, as a woman or as a goddess. She finally decided that she would reach to the final decision as soon as she had analyzed the situation; she could be well organized even if she was the goddess of chaos.

As she was not in a hurry, she was travelling idly along the Greek lands when she was suddenly distracted by a very warm and sweet scene, something that she would never do by herself but that she secretly desired to experience, at least once in her long existence.

A brunette young woman was sitting on a patch of green grass, peppered with tiny red flowers. Her back was resting onto the bark of an olive tree and she was wearing a deep blue peplos that, apart from accentuating her beauty, created a nice contrast against the nature that surrounded her.

She had a scroll in one of her delicate and small hands and the other was caressing the soft and short brunette tresses of a little boy who was resting on his back with his head on his mother's lap. The melodious voice of the woman had probably made the little boy doze off, that was why his eyelids were closed, resting over the pale skin of his cheeks.

Eris looked at the scene below her and her rotten heart flicked slightly. Suddenly her gaze was focused again onto the little boy and when he opened his eyes, because his mother had stopped reading, she felt like drowning in those two pools of love and innocence, she could not help noticing that his eyes had the same shade of blue of the sky above him.

Eris was bewitched by the little boy's features, he truly was a handsome boy and she deeply lamented that he was just a little kid, not older than five years old.

The boy opened his eyes wider and he lifted his short arm, pointing with his index finger towards her direction.

"Look mama, there is a beautiful woman floating" the little boy said with happiness in his voice.

"Where Phai? I can't see anything in the sky" replied Helena, putting her hand over her eyebrows covering the sunlight.

"There, just above me, she has dark and long black hair and her eyes are amethyst" said the little boy again, propping his thin body onto his elbows.

"There is nothing there, my boy. Your overactive imagination and your lack of food are playing tricks with your still sleepy mind" said Helena smiling towards her son. She knew it was a tactic Hephaestion often used to stay longer with her outside the house and enjoying their mutual company.

"No mama, it is true and she is speaking to me too" the boy insisted once more.

"Don't do that Hephaestion Amyntoros, you know I don't like lies and it is not good" Helena told her son off gently but firmly.

"But it is true and you, better that anyone, know that I don't like lies either" said the boy with an offended tone in his voice.

"Well, I am going inside the house now to prepare dinner, come in as soon as you stop daydreaming" said Helena, standing up and dusting the thin blades of grass off her peplos.

Hephaestion sighed deeply and he felt a bit sad because her mother had not believed him and the "mysterious woman" had stopped her talking as soon as they had started their argument. He could also say that he had seen the woman with a naughty smirk in her pink lips.

As soon as Helena had crossed the threshold of the house, Eris dissolved into a cloud of dark smoke but she reappeared immediately after, sitting next to Hephaestion on that patch of emerald grass.

"Can you see me?" asked the goddess with a purring voice.

"Yes milady" answered Hephaestion with fear in his voice.

"But it is not possible while I am in my goddess body" said the woman, scratching her scalp with her long and red nails.

"I don't know why I can do this" said the boy, feeling a bit calmer.

"Who are you, boy? Why are you so special?" asked Eris, still confused by the little one.

"I am just Hephaestion, milady. I am not special at all" answered the boy, casting his eyes down.

"Oh! Yes you are, there is something in your aura that shouts special. And your eyes … your eyes are the open gate to your soul and heart but I can also see chaos in them" said Eris staring at the boy with intensity.

"How can you say that? May I ask who you are?" asked the boy with deep respect.

"I am Eris, the goddess …" but she could not finish her sentence as she was interrupted by the boy saying …

"the goddess of chaos and discord" he suddenly got stiff.

"Ah how sweet! You know who I am" said the goddess clapping madly.

"Of course I know about you but I have been a good boy and I don't want to bring chaos to anyone, especially to my family. Please I have to ask you to go and let me be a good boy" pleaded the little brunette with his eyes full of unshed tears.

"I will leave you alone if that is what you want but you must not fear me; I can assure you that your soul is pure and there is not even a little inch of evilness in it so don't worry. Only one more thing before I go, I can tell you that you will bring chaos and when you do it, it will be loud but something better and stronger will be born from those ruins that you will be able to create" said Eris with her deep voice, in a slow way as if she wanted to those words seep into the boy's mind.

""But I am just a boy!" said Hephaestion loudly.

"I know but you will become a powerful man some day, so powerful that people will follow you up to the edge of the earth and you will give them peace and greatness in return to their loyalty and constant help" Eris said slowly again.

Hephaestion listened to Eris carefully and kept her words in a corner of his mind. After some minutes in silence, he lifted his gaze towards the goddess again and sighed deeply, he was trying to understand what had been revealed to him before and a _"Sweet Aphrodite, help me"_ escaped from his lips.

Eris looked at him and started to laugh madly. Hephaestion looked at her as if she were crazy.

"Aha! So Aphrodite is behind this!"

"I don't understand" said Hephaestion with despair in his voice.

"You said and I quote; "Sweet Aphrodite, help me " " with a smirk in her face.

"Yes, she is my favourite goddess and I have always felt a strong connection with her" explained the brunette boy.

"I knew it, I knew it that I had seen you before today, you are that protégée she is always talking about, praising your looks and your beauty as well as your intelligence and strong will" the goddess explained so Hephaestion could understand the situation a bit better.

"And why do you remember me? When have we met before, milady? Because I cannot remember"

The goddess invited the little child to go for a walk around the nearby forest; he hesitated a bit in the beginning but then he thought that he would be in the company of a goddess so anything bad could happen. They strolled in silence for a little while and then Eris started to retell his own story, a part that had not totally been revealed by his mother yet.

"I met you at your birth, Aphrodite had been looking forward to your birth because, as you probably know, your mother could not bear children but Aphrodite, seeing her deep love for your father, granted her the deepest desire of her heart with only one condition, Helena, your mother, had to let the gods intervene in your conception, not directly because you are mortal, but by allowing the Olympians to grant you some gifts. Many gods and goddesses gave you things but I was really impressed by Poseidon because he happily renounced to the control over two of his waves from the Mediterranean sea and gave them to you and that was how your eyes were created, so vast, ever ready to change according to the circumstances, with the power of being turbulent or calm. And if that had not been such a great gift, Aphrodite added her own part by granting you the possibility to see with them more than any human being could; that is why I think you are able to see me and if that is the case, you will be able to see through people as well" the young and gorgeous goddess told the boy next to her.

Hephaestion looked at her with surprise, he knew that his mother was a devote follower of Aphrodite but what he did not know was that he was her direct protégée.

"And what have you granted me, milady, if I may ask?" asked Hephaestion without being totally sure of wanting to know her true answer.

Eris laughed loudly and said with a smirk in her pinkish and full lips:

"Chaos! What else? But as the gods became a bit angry with me, I was forced to add something else" she added.

"And what was that?" asked Hephaestion, once again more terrified of hearing the new answer.

"I had to give you the power of controlling that chaos, not only yours but also others who are or will be very dear to you, so my dear boy, you'd better be good or you will spend your whole life cleaning after others' messes" she said laughing.

"Thank you for your gift and your explanation, milady. Now I am going to go inside the house before my mama worries" said Hephaestion in the most polite tone of voice that Eris had ever listened to; of course his voice was tinged with fear but the little boy had been able to mask it with perfection.

"Go my boy and I am going to make an exception with you, but only this time" she warned him.

"What is that exception?" he asked once more relaxed but equally curious.

"I will not give you to drink my special concoction, the one that makes people forget meeting me"

"Thank you, I would not like to lose the memory of meeting you, but why will you do that? Is it because I am special, as you said?" the boy was really worried about her answer so she tried to soothe his fear.

"No, I am not doing this because you are special, I am doing this because I think that my revelation could be useful and come handy in the near future"

"Thanks again. Will I see you one more time?" he asked with hope in his cerulean calm eyes.

"I don't know but if I am near you will notice me easily, won't you?" and saying that she disappeared in a curtain of dark smoke, the same she had used to appear next to him in the garden.

Hephaestion entered the house and went directly towards his mother. He hugged her tightly and murmured "Thank you" against her belly. When Helena asked him what he had just said, he just replied that nothing but that he loved her dearly. Helena kissed the crown of his head and lifting her green eyes towards the sky, she thanked Aphrodite once more for her son.

A sweet giggle, followed by a naughty one, invaded the cozy kitchen and Hephaestion, still in his mother's arms, winked to the air because he was pretty sure that the naughty goddess of chaos had seen him winking at her.

TBC


	18. Chapter 7b Eris

_**Chapter 7b "Eris"**_

Eris was totally exhausted after her visit to the brunette boy; being so calm, sweet and gentle towards people was a real sacrifice for her. However, she decided to start her trip to Macedon again but her mind could not forget her encounter with the gifted boy, and so she promised herself to keep an extra eye on him in the years to come, he might need a hand and she would be there, ready to help the gorgeous brunette to unleash his chaos and achieve his goal in life.

She finally got to Macedon and decided to keep her goddess form. She snooped around the palace and she wanted to know what was so important about having a son with eyes of two different colours.

She met the little prince as soon as she crossed the main garden; he was playing and fighting with a wooden sword against a strong young man with jet black hair, at least fifteen years older than him. The little blonde boy was quite skillful in spite of his very young age and the young man was not doing things easier for him.

She stood nearby, looking at his movements when she caught sight of the boy's eyes, one grey and one brown and due to them her internal chaos reached unlimited measures.

That boy was chaos on legs and she would enjoy every single minute spent next to him, teaching how to make people kneel at their trail of chaos and destruction together.

The boy felt an intense gaze over his person and he looked around, getting distracted, and consequently obtaining a hard blow on his back by Cleitus's wooden sword.

The boy was about to protest against the unfair lost point when he saw Eris in all her glory; the naughty goddess, even though she was naturally gorgeous, she tended to boost her own beauty whenever she wanted to capture someone and bring them to the dark side.

So there she was, her long black bangs of hair were floating in the air, making spirals as if they were Medusa's snakes or his mother Olympias's; her eyes were two precious bright amethysts with a naughty sparkle in them and her slender and voluptuous body was covered in a pinkish peplos with only one shoulder covered while the uncovered one showed a kind of tattoo with the symbol of chaos.

Alexander gasped loudly and the unusual noise brought Cleitus immediately to his side, asking if he was still angry for the lost point. Alexander could not speak a single word so he shocked his head and lifted his still chubby hand and with his forefinger, he pointed at the goddess. Cleitus looked towards the place Alexander was pointing at but he could not see anything, just some plants moving due to the gentle breeze that was travelling along them.

When Alexander recovered his voice and his astonishment had finally been subsided, he told Cleitus what he had seen but the older warrior just laughed at him, telling him that the strong sunrays had fried his brain. Without waiting for a counter answer, Cleitus scooped the boy in his arms and set him over his right shoulder, carrying the little blonde as if he were a sack of potatoes.

Alexander tried to kick the tall man, asking him to put him down on the ground so he could go and speak to the beautiful lady. But it was a lost battle, Cleitus had a very strong personality and he had never surrendered to the prince's tantrums; he would not allow the prince any more wandering so he directly took the angry boy to Lanike, his sister and Alexander's nanny, so she could get him ready to have his lunch with his royal parents.

Lanike had to fight hard to keep the little prince under control and inside the tub but she did succeed. In the meantime, Alexander could not stop babbling about the beautiful lady that had been floating in his mother's garden. Lanike listened to him carefully and after testing his forehead and found it cool, she rejected the idea of a heat stroke. Alexander was well-known by his active imagination and so she associated his babbling with that.

While Alexander was having his evening meal with his parents, he retold them his experience and king Philip laughed loudly and started to make jokes about his little son trying to conquer grown up and gorgeous women. Olympias, on the other hand, smiled shyly at his anecdote and remained strangely quiet during the meal. Her green eyes showed a pang of nervousness, it was easily seen she was not comfortable about the ongoing situation but her husband had not realized about that fact. Olympias's mind drifted away and she repeated inside her head every single word Alexander had previously said and if her intuition was correct, the goddess of chaos had just casted a spell on her own son and everybody knew that she was a powerful goddess and it was almost impossible to get rid of her spells or overrule her caprices and meddling among the weak and easily manipulated human beings.

After his father's jokes were over, Alexander was quiet for the rest of the meal and as soon as it was over, he skipped dessert on purpose, he asked permission to go for a walk in his mother's garden. Philip nodded as his mouth was full with the sweet caramel figs and so Olympias offered her company that was distractedly accepted by Alexander who was deep in his thoughts.

The blonde five-year old- boy was walking towards his destination with a firm pace and his small feet took him to the exact spot where the goddess had been standing, floating more than standing, earlier that afternoon and looking at him while he was playing sword games with Cleitus.

To his surprise, he discovered a blackened drawing on the ground and he pointed towards it with one little hand while the other covered his mouth. He turned round to see if his mother was still with him and he saw her, right by his side, with her eyes wide open. Olympias had looked at the drawing and she had immediately recognized it; the drawing confirmed her suspicion; that was the mark of the goddess of chaos and discord and the description of it matched the tattoo Alexander had seen in the mysterious woman's bare shoulder.

Olympias got closer to his son and hugged him tightly and she whispered into his ear that she believed everything he had said during their meal and that he did not have to worry because she would always be there to help him. The young Alexander looked at his mother with confusion in his two-coloured eyes but as he trusted her with his life, he accepted her words.

That night, queen Olympias tucked her son in bed and stayed sitting by his side until his breathing told her he was deeply and calmly sleeping, in that precise moment, she started to pray to the Olympians to help her find someone who would be able to control the chaos that her beautiful but overactive son would cause. She also knew that due to her son's turbulent spirit, Alexander would never be able to control that chaos on his own and that the person able to control him and his chaos was due to suffer great pain and stress but this person might also get his son's love and loyalty, especially if the control did not interfere with his goals in life.

Olympias was so concentrated in her prays that she did not realize that a warm and faint light had enveloped her body. However, some minutes later a soothing feeling invaded her heart and she felt much calmer and so she realized that her prays had been listened and the gods were letting her know that the person able to control his son's chaos had already been born and would find its way to him as soon as they believed it was necessary.

Eris laughed loudly and naughtily again, provoking a cold shiver along the queen's spine but she shut up immediately. She left the palace because she had already achieved more than her goal. Not only had she seen the two coloured eyed boy, another gifted human being but also awaken his internal chaos. From that moment the chaos was awaken, it would show up in many varied ways during his life until it took his final form and in that moment it would be unstoppable and it would require a very strong person to control it and put it to rest.

The person able to control the chaotic situations Alexander would produce, would also be able to control the man in his calm state and in that way they could overtake his mind, his will, in a few words, his whole life and Alexander could become a mere puppet of that person, who would be able to shape and redefine Alexander's life to his own wishes, needs or will; if that was the controller's desire ….

While floating in the dark blue sky, Eris laughed again, this time louder than ever, so loud that she frightened away some doves in their flight, because the goddess had just realized that she had already met the controller of the royal chaos in a sweet brunette boy of five years old with the most amazing blue eyes people had ever seen.

But after a while, Eris quickly forgot about those important children, she was always involved in something, carrying and producing wars, fights and destruction wherever she went but she suddenly remembered that chaos had many stages and she should have to pay attention to those signs she knew would soon appear.

The first sign of chaos was possessiveness and the two coloured eye prince showed it as soon as he met his controller, still unaware of the important position that his blue eyed friend would have in his life. He made very clear through his words and actions that Hephaestion was his alone.

The second sign of chaos was jealousy; a feeling that had been awakened before during Alexander's early childhood but that had faded away without the direct intervention of Hephaestion's calm nature. However, jealousy struck again when both boys had turned into teens and the bonding of their souls was getting stronger. Alexander was jealous but he had never acted until the moment he realized that Cleitus was on the verge of offering himself as Hephaestion's erastes and Alexander, knowing that his Hephaestion had always had a soft spot for the brave warrior, knew that the moment to put things clear had just arrived. Alexander decided to take the bull by its horns before the problem escalated and escaped from his hands, so he calmly claimed Hephaestion as his in front of Cleitus, sealing his stake with a tender but possessive kiss on the brunette's lips.

When the stake was more than clear and Hephaestion requited his love for the prince, the level of jealousy went down to a more logical figure and due to that, it was more controllable and less harmful.

The arrival to new lands, exotic and rich, not only in possessions but also in peoples and customs, brought the third stage of chaos that was oblivion, especially of the king's Macedonian roots that had been the ones keeping his vast and ever growing Army together. So when Alexander started to turn more towards his Asian subjects and rave about the Asian customs, his own men started to criticize his behaviour and so the king became disrespectful and impolite, leaving in his own people a tang of deception and disloyalty.

Hopefully the king had a blind follower in his lover, who, in spite of feeling as much disappointed as the rest of his companions, stood firm beside his king while they listened to the old warriors shouting at him loudly his mistakes and failures. Alexander got crazy, he started to shout back but his shouts were covered by many others, much louder, and thrown at him as lethal arrows.

Alexander made a last attempt to bring his warriors to his domain and threw a threat and Hephaestion, who was standing covering his king's back with his own, held his breath for a while because he did not know if he would be able to calm the mob after that. Alexander told them that if they were so disappointed with him, he would gladly let them leave to go back to Macedon but that he would go on in his conquest of the east with his Asians, however, he added that whomever left, they would have to remember until the day they died that they had left his king alone in Asia.

Hephaestion, once more astonished by Alexander's bravery and arrogance, saw how the men started to gather closer as if they were on the verge to jump against the king's throat. So squaring his shoulders and standing in his full height by his king, he waited for the first blow to strike … but it never came. As usual his calm behaviour and unconditional support to the man standing beside him had gained his companions' trust again. The revolt was quietened down quickly, its instigators and prospective traitors killed and the army went on in his journey to the Far East.

The king was so intoxicated with his own pride by this victory that he did not realize that his men had accepted this not because of him but for the brunette and gentle General, who had secretly promised to talk to the king in their favour and in order to find a fair solution to their demands.

The common soldiers and most of the companions had long deposited on Hephaestion their full trust and that was one of the reasons why they continued travelling, they wanted to show their loyalty to Hephaestion and make him know that he would always count with their support.

Chaos was once more quietened down but the king continued with his erratic behaviour. What was totally unexpected was how the young king could move from one feeling to another so quickly and without showing any kind of remorse and they all continued marveling at the way Hephaestion had always been able to handle every single time their king threw himself into a tantrum.

Things seemed to get better so when the fourth stage of chaos broke out sooner than they expected, it was a nasty surprise for all of them, especially because they were not well prepared to deal with it.

Suddenly, Alexander began acting quite abnormally again and his consumption of uncut red wine had raised to uncontrollable limits; sometimes, more often than never, Alexander was already drunk since very early in the morning and that implied that he had not slept at all during all night or that he had passed out near a jar of wine and had started to drink as soon as he had opened his eyes. What was worse was that the man denied his problem, even when he could not stand or walk in a straight line all by himself, and he was always looking for lame excuses, such as he was celebrating a friend's birthday or that he had remembered he had not toasted in favour of such or such god for a while.

Hephaestion was finding more and more difficult to hide his king's faults from the rest of the people and also to control his volatile mood, even when they were alone. Alexander had started to space out and retreated to his own mind, without answering Hephaestion's questions or looking back at him with a vague look in his eyes, as if he was trying hard to understand what his lover was trying to say or explain to him. Hephaestion had sadly stopped trying to get a coherent response when Alexander was so absent-minded and so their alone time had suffered drastically. To put the matter worse, Alexander had told Hephaestion that he had found out that the brunette had become too serious and he was no longer cheerful and entertaining so the king had turned more and more frequently towards Bagoas, the Persian eunuch with a deep crush on the blonde king and who, in return, was getting more and more cocky in his answers and looks because he was taking Hephaestion's place not only in the king's bed but also in his heart.

The next stage of chaos was near and it was set free in a banquet that had been carefully organized to be a celebration but it ended up being a show of death and fear about their future.

The king's speech that had started as full of praise for one of his best and most loyal companion and General finished with blood and death when wrath took control of the king's mind and heart and the blonde young king, while being highly inebriated, killed Cleitus without hesitation by spearing him through his stomach.

Wrath was unleashed and took the form of an ugly and evil creature, all dark with sharpen claws and bloodied sharp teeth, floating above the presents and bringing with her chaos and terror. They had never witnessed before how the king's chaos take a shape as defined as it had taken that day and they could feel a frozen shiver running along their spines while they tried to run away and hide from that evil creature. Hephaestion, always feeling more prepared than the rest, looked upwards again and he was sure he had also seen, apart from the floating evil creature, another floating appearance, not as dark as the first one but he was totally convinced that it had a pair of sparkling amethyst eyes and he had also listened to a naughty laughter, bordering into a maddening fit.

Alexander was unrecognizable, totally changed, he sobbed and shouted for his fallen companion and friend and then, seconds later, he had to be held back because he wanted to kick the now cooling corpse because he had made him lose his temper. Hephaestion was one of the men holding Alexander back by keeping him against his broad chest, a gesture that he had always used to calm his king down.

But the royal wrath was totally unleashed and Alexander trashed inside the former comforting cocoon of his lover's caring arms until the brunette had to release him; Alexander in his moments of extreme chaos used to acquire and develop an extraordinary strength and he was now hurting Hephaestion with all his blows and kicks.

Eris was there again, watching with pleasure how her blonde friend had finally decided to untie his internal chaos and show the world what he was able to do to achieve his goals or what he would not fear to do to anyone who dared to defy his authority. And she laughed like a mad woman, watching as his faithful controller was frozen in the spot, trying to decide what to do to control him the best, trying to cope with the consequences his king's mistake would bring, trying to remain strong and loyal to a man who had turned into a beast.

As soon as Alexander was free of the arms holding him back, he looked around the banquet hall, his eyes completely dilated due to his extreme anger and he started to wander around the hall and insult the few people who were still there, demanding their loyalty and the approval of his latest action.

Seeing the disappointment of his own behaviour in the people's eyes, he turned to Bagoas and abandoned the place leaving the clean-up to his astonished lover who was looking at his retreating back with pain and for the first time, with anger in his cerulean eyes.

Eris, the goddess of chaos and discord, had done a very good and neat job with the gifted boy because Alexander, in spite of having lost many things in his life, had never lost his humanity … until now.

She was also pretty sure that she had seen tiredness in his controller's eyes, a feeling that had not been seen before in those blue eyes until today and maybe the controller had reached to his patience's limit, maybe the controller had been pushed too much out of his comfort zone, perhaps the controller was fed up of his constant cleaning after his king's messes; maybe the controller had reached the point of no return.

The naughty goddess patted her own chest, congratulating herself for a job well done and she left the banquet hall, whistling lowly a war song.


End file.
